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Nigerian troops repel Boko Haram attack on base: sources
KANO, Nigeria, Sept 25, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – Nigerian troops repelled
another attempt by Boko Haram jihadists to overrun a military base in
northeast Nigeria, military and civilian sources told AFP on Tuesday.
Dozens of jihadist fighters from an Islamic State-backed Boko Haram
faction attacked the base on Sunday in the village of Kekeno, near the
garrison town of Monguno, in Borno state.
Recent months have seen repeated attacks on military bases in the
northern part of Borno, although Nigerian commanders have strongly denied
reports of heavy troop casualties.
The authorities maintain the group, whose insurgency has left more than
27,000 dead in northeast Nigeria since 2009, is on the verge of defeat,
despite the ongoing violence.
A senior military officer in the Borno state capital, Maiduguri, said the
Islamists were equipped with anti-aircraft guns and rocket-propelled grenades
on Sunday.
But they were unable to breach defensive ditches surrounding the
facility, he added on condition of anonymity, as he was not authorised to
speak to the media.
Boko Haram “met stiff resistance, which led to a battle that lasted for
hours”, he said.
Details of the attack were slow to emerge as telecommunications
infrastructure has been destroyed by fighting and there are strict controls
on movement in rural Borno state.
People from the area were only able to reach Maiduguri on Tuesday as the
military shut the main road for 24 hours as they searched for rebels in the
bush.
“Boko Haram attacked at about 5:45 pm (1645 GMT) on Sunday. They came in
several trucks and on motorcycles,” said bus driver Sani Madaye.
Madaye said he and other drivers were sitting in a shed near the military
base at the time. He was on his way to the fishing town of Baga, on the
shores of Lake Chad and was forced to stop.
“The gunmen used a herd of cattle as cover to attack the base but they
were detected in nearby bushes as they approached their target,” he said.
“A truck carrying fighters attempted to break (through) the barrier but
the driver was shot and the truck swerved and crashed,” added another
witness, who gave his name as Abdullahi.
“Suddenly, there was heavy shooting from Boko Haram and soldiers
responded with fire, and it lasted for around one hour.”
Troop reinforcements were sent from Monguno, eight kilometres (five
miles) away, and a fighter jet was deployed that forced the jihadists to
withdraw.
Further attempts were made to storm the base until Boko Haram finally
withdrew at about 10:30 pm, said Madaye, adding there were no military
casualties.
There was no indication of the number of Boko Haram casualties, despite
there being “bloodstains all over” at first light, said Madaye.
BSS/AFP/RY/1725 hrs