By Ade Oyeyemi
Suspected Boko Haram fighters have attacked a military position in Mairari community, Guzamala Local Government Area of Borno State, with soldiers feared killed during a prolonged gun battle.
The attack reportedly occurred around midnight on Tuesday and lasted for more than two hours, according to local sources familiar with the incident.
The Chairman of Guzamala Local Government Area, Umar Sheriff, confirmed the attack on Wednesday, saying the assailants targeted the military post. He, however, said no civilian was reported killed.
Sheriff said he could not immediately provide details of the casualties, explaining that information about the incident remained limited because of its security implications.
“The incident occurred last night around 12 am. Though I don’t have statistics regarding the casualties yet, because it’s not everything we are told. It’s a security matter. But I know that no civilian was killed,” he said.
The council chairman described the assault as unusually severe, noting that the community had not experienced an attack of such magnitude in recent times.
“They have never attacked as much as this time, but thank God, the military were able to repel them,” he added.
Sheriff said the situation had since stabilised and disclosed that he planned to visit the community on Thursday to assess the security situation.
“The situation is calm. I will be there tomorrow morning (Thursday) to evaluate the situation,” he stated.
However, local sources who spoke on condition of anonymity said casualties were believed to have been recorded on both sides during the exchange of gunfire.
One of the sources said there were reports that seven soldiers had been killed, but stressed that the figure had not been independently verified.
“I know there are military casualties. It was rumoured that seven soldiers were killed, but no one could verify that yet,” the source said.
Another source said the attack threw the community into tension, adding that the intensity of the gunfire suggested that the attackers may also have suffered losses.
“That attack left the entire town in tension. With the gunfire yesterday, there is no way that the terrorists will not suffer casualties. Both local forces and the military stood their ground,” the source said.
Efforts to obtain comments from the Acting Military Information Officer of the North-East Joint Task Force, Operation Hadin Kai, Captain Mohammed Goni, were unsuccessful, as he neither answered calls nor returned them as of press time.
