Eight Nigerian soldiers were killed and 23 others injured after ISWAP fighters attacked a military base in Borno State, security sources said.
Suspected fighters from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) stormed a military base in Cross Kauwa village on Monday, with about 70 militants riding motorcycles launching the assault, according to three security sources who spoke to AFP. “Eight soldiers paid the supreme price, and 23 others sustained injuries,” a military officer said. The attackers reportedly mobilised from a camp on Dabar Masara island in Lake Chad and carried out a detour before striking the base.
“The terrorists burnt down the base along with 11 gun trucks and took away the anti-aircraft guns mounted on them,” one anti-jihadist militia source said. The base, located about 24 kilometres from the fishing hub of Baga, has served as a key security position shielding the town from insurgent attacks. All sources declined to be identified as they were not authorised to speak publicly about the incident.
The attack comes amid intensified assaults by ISWAP and rival group Boko Haram on military installations in Nigeria’s northeast. According to the military, jihadists also attacked a base in Mandaragirau near the Sambisa forest enclave late on Saturday, killing and wounding an unspecified number of soldiers and anti-jihadist militia members.
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