Army authorities disclosed, yesterday, that 15
soldiers and a lieutenant have been killed by Boko
Haram terrorists along the Baga-Maiduguri Road
in Borno State, while 150 sect members were
killed by troops of the 7th Division during a fierce
battle with the insurgents last weekend. Defence sources, however, contradicted the
casualty figure, saying at least 40 soldiers were
killed and 65 others missing in a deadly ambush
by the suspected members of Boko Haram. Confirming the incident, Director of Army Public
Relations, Brigadier General Ibrahim, stated that
on September 12, 2013, troops from 81 Battalion
under 7th Division of the Nigerian Army acting on
intelligence report gathered that the insurgent
had regrouped at Kafiya forest and were planning to launch an attack. “Following the information, the troops launched
an attack and destroyed the enemy camp, and
during the encounter that lasted several hours,
the troops killed 150 insurgents while one
Lieutenant and 15 soldiers lost their lives”.
According to the Army spokesman, the enemy
camp was well fortified with anti-aircraft and anti-
tank guns mounted on vehicles. The Army spokesman also disclosed that one
Abba Goroma, one of the most wanted insurgent
commanders, on whose head the sum of N10
million was placed as bounty, was killed in the
encounter. The Federal Government had last year placed a
N10 million bounty on Goroma for any
information leading to his whereabouts. Asked to comment on reports on social media
that about 40 military personnel were killed and
65 of them were missing as a result of the
ambush, General Attahiru dismissed the report,
saying it was a fabrication insisting that only 15
soldiers and an officer were killed. An online publication quoting multiple defence
sources, however, claimed that 40 soldiers were
killed by the sect members while 65 others were
missing. The report stated that the army
authorities were miffed by the incident and have
ordered an investigation into the suspected operation blunder that gave the militants such an
upper hand. It quoted army officials as saying
that the commanding officer of the unit that
carried out the operation has now been removed
from his post. The casualty, one of the heaviest for the military
in its campaign against the militant group in
Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, was
considered a classic case of operational and
communication failure. According to the report, a detachment of soldiers
under the 134 Battalion of the 12 Brigade under
the Multi National Joint Task Force, MNJTF,
stationed in Kangarwa village in Kukawa local
government, had conducted a reconnaissance to
gather intelligence around the area, during which they established the presence of previously
unnoticed Boko Haram camps. The soldiers were said to have returned to their
base and filed a report recommending aerial
bombardment of the area, preparatory for a
ground operation by troops.
But that plan was cancelled at the final minutes
by an unnamed top official without formal
communication to the more than 100 troops that
had already advanced on the area. “Due to lack of communication, the troop ran into
the terrorists without knowing that the aerial
bombardment had been cancelled and they were
caught unawares,” one of the sources said. The soldiers were trapped in the ambush under
heavy fire from the militants who had surrounded
the area, leaving at least 40 soldiers killed. 65
others have remained missing, other sources said. The insurgents reportedly confiscated a huge
cache of weapons from the soldiers after the
attack. The attack came less than two months after a
similar one on August 4, which also resulted in
heavy casualty following a surprise attack by Boko
Haram on a camp at Malam Fatori.
soldiers and a lieutenant have been killed by Boko
Haram terrorists along the Baga-Maiduguri Road
in Borno State, while 150 sect members were
killed by troops of the 7th Division during a fierce
battle with the insurgents last weekend. Defence sources, however, contradicted the
casualty figure, saying at least 40 soldiers were
killed and 65 others missing in a deadly ambush
by the suspected members of Boko Haram. Confirming the incident, Director of Army Public
Relations, Brigadier General Ibrahim, stated that
on September 12, 2013, troops from 81 Battalion
under 7th Division of the Nigerian Army acting on
intelligence report gathered that the insurgent
had regrouped at Kafiya forest and were planning to launch an attack. “Following the information, the troops launched
an attack and destroyed the enemy camp, and
during the encounter that lasted several hours,
the troops killed 150 insurgents while one
Lieutenant and 15 soldiers lost their lives”.
According to the Army spokesman, the enemy
camp was well fortified with anti-aircraft and anti-
tank guns mounted on vehicles. The Army spokesman also disclosed that one
Abba Goroma, one of the most wanted insurgent
commanders, on whose head the sum of N10
million was placed as bounty, was killed in the
encounter. The Federal Government had last year placed a
N10 million bounty on Goroma for any
information leading to his whereabouts. Asked to comment on reports on social media
that about 40 military personnel were killed and
65 of them were missing as a result of the
ambush, General Attahiru dismissed the report,
saying it was a fabrication insisting that only 15
soldiers and an officer were killed. An online publication quoting multiple defence
sources, however, claimed that 40 soldiers were
killed by the sect members while 65 others were
missing. The report stated that the army
authorities were miffed by the incident and have
ordered an investigation into the suspected operation blunder that gave the militants such an
upper hand. It quoted army officials as saying
that the commanding officer of the unit that
carried out the operation has now been removed
from his post. The casualty, one of the heaviest for the military
in its campaign against the militant group in
Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, was
considered a classic case of operational and
communication failure. According to the report, a detachment of soldiers
under the 134 Battalion of the 12 Brigade under
the Multi National Joint Task Force, MNJTF,
stationed in Kangarwa village in Kukawa local
government, had conducted a reconnaissance to
gather intelligence around the area, during which they established the presence of previously
unnoticed Boko Haram camps. The soldiers were said to have returned to their
base and filed a report recommending aerial
bombardment of the area, preparatory for a
ground operation by troops.
But that plan was cancelled at the final minutes
by an unnamed top official without formal
communication to the more than 100 troops that
had already advanced on the area. “Due to lack of communication, the troop ran into
the terrorists without knowing that the aerial
bombardment had been cancelled and they were
caught unawares,” one of the sources said. The soldiers were trapped in the ambush under
heavy fire from the militants who had surrounded
the area, leaving at least 40 soldiers killed. 65
others have remained missing, other sources said. The insurgents reportedly confiscated a huge
cache of weapons from the soldiers after the
attack. The attack came less than two months after a
similar one on August 4, which also resulted in
heavy casualty following a surprise attack by Boko
Haram on a camp at Malam Fatori.
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