No fewer than 90 people were killed on Saturday night by suspected Boko Haram insurgents who invaded a Borno State village.
Last week, scores were killed in Konduga also in Borno State and in neighbouring Adamawa State, nine soldiers were reportedly killed in an ambush.
The Saturday night attack took place in Izghe village in Gwoza Local Government. Chanting “Allah is great”, suspected Islamic militants gunned down dozens of Christian villagers and slit the throats of others in an area where the military has been bombing extremists out of forest hideouts, survivors said on Sunday.
Local government chairman Maina Ularamu told The Associated Press (AP) that he has reports of more than 50 people killed in the attack.
Sources in Maiduguri however told reporters that military authorities, who have been probing the attack, have fingered some mercenaries of ex-Libyan leader Muammar Ghadaffi as part of those who invaded the town, killing residents and burning homes.
According to a source in the military, going by the analysis of some reports, some mercenaries of the ex-Libyan leader have teamed up with Boko Haram sect to attack towns and villages in Borno State.
“These mercenaries relocated from Libya to Mali in the heat of the Libyan crisis, which led to the ouster of the late Ghadaffi. And with the intervention of French troops and African Mission, the mercenaries eventually lost their bases in Mali,” the source said, adding:
“You will recall that Nigerian troops also played a vital role in putting out insurgency in Mali.
“So, this is the latest bend to the insurgency we are curtailing in Borno State. With our sustained counter-attacks on Boko Haram sect, there was no way the group could remain stronger if there was no external backing.
“They have been using Hilux vans and trucks, painted in Nigerian Army colour, to invade towns and villages in Borno. If there is no external backing like those of Libyan mercenaries, the Boko Haram sect cannot go far.
“These mercenaries, with stinking funds at their disposal, have not even given up in Libya. On January 18, some of them were said to have overrun an Air Force Base outside the City of Sabha in Southern Libya. They do have an ally in Boko Haram.”
“There is the suspicion that the Libyan mercenaries are backing the Boko Haram sect in retaliation of the position on the Libyan crisis.
Responding to a question, the source added: “If you look at recent pattern of attacks, the insurgents cannot be said to be waging a Jihad or pursuing any agenda to Islamise Nigeria because they have been destroying churches, mosques and killing Christians and Muslims.
“It looks more of a war against the sovereignty of Nigeria than any religious colouration. This is why the military authorities have directed troops to go full blast on land and in the air.”
The top source assured that the troops will succeed in checking the insurgency in Borno State.
The hoodlums laid a siege to the hilly village killing at will and inflicting severe injuries on residents in which no fewer than 90 were reported to have died.
One survivor who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, said the village list of those killed amounted to 63 dead, adding that the attackers looted the village’s food stores and made off with about 10 vehicles.
Survivors said they were among hundreds of people from Izghe and neighboring villages who fled on foot through the bush in the night from Borno into Adamawa, two of three states under a state of emergency to halt a four-year-old Islamic uprising. The other state under emergency is Yobe State.
Insurgents of the Boko Haram terrorist network routinely attack civilians after they are attacked by the military.
On Wednesday last week, the Air Force began daily aerial bombardments near Izghe of extremist hideouts in the Sambisa Forest along the border with Cameroon.
Soldiers moved in on foot following the bombing and at least nine troops and several militants were killed in a fierce hours-long battle, according to hospital and military sources.
After that attack, Ularamu urged the military to deploy more troops, saying the soldiers are outnumbered and outgunned by militants armed with anti-aircraft and anti-tank weapons as well as armoured cars looted during attacks.
Dozens more soldiers were stationed in recent days in Madagali town, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the scene of Saturday’s attack. Thousands of people have been killed and tens of thousands forced from their homes by the state of emergency and by militants who want to create an Islamic state in Nigeria.
The Borno State government said it would construct 250 houses for 800 residents of Bulabulin Ngarnam in Maiduguri who were displaced by the Boko Haram crisis.
Governor Kashim Shettima stated this while inspecting the site for the construction of the houses near the Maiduguri Flour Mills.
Shettima said the gesture was aimed at providing shelter for the victims who lost their property to the crisis. He directed the committee handling the project to begins work on the site next week for early completion.
“We are building 250 houses for the residents to enable them to have shelter for their families. “We are hoping that the houses will be ready early enough to provide succour to the victims,” the governor said.
Shettima advised the committee to use cement blocks instead of the usual brick blocks for such houses to reduce cost, stressing that “each household should have a two-bedroom house to accommodate the family”.
“The house might not necessarily contain a big parlour and other artificial design, but let it be convenient for the family.” Chairman of the committee, Ibrahim Ali, praised the governor for approving the construction of the houses and expressed willingness to begin work as soon as possible.