Nigerian soldiers recorded another resounding victory over Boko Haram fighters late Tuesday and yesterday in fierce fights in Konduga town of Borno State when dozens of the insurgents who stormed the town to avenge the mass killing of their colleagues last Friday were crushed by the soldiers.
Security sources and vigilante members said late yesterday that as many as 400 Boko Haram members were killed by Nigerian troops in the encounter in Konduga and Ngamdu Kaga LGA.
The encounter in Konduga lasted between 6pm on Tuesday until the early hours of Wednesday.
Bashir Abbas, a senior vigilante official who participated in the operation said over 250 insurgents were killed by the troops in Konduga who got reinforcement from Maiduguri in the dead of the night.
“Those killed in Konduga were up to 250. They confronted the soldiers in three batches but were all repelled.
“A different set of the terrorists yesterday took over the highway at Ngamdu in Kaga LGA along the Maiduguri- Damaturu road where over 150 of them were killed,” Bashir said.
Our correspondent saw many dead bodies at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) which some health officials said were those of the insurgents. A senior security official said the ultimate target of the insurgents was to attack Maiduguri, the state capital. He said the insurgents appeared on the highway after manipulating their way through bushes in Yobe and Borno States, adding that another APC was recovered from them.
The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) said late yesterday said that Konduga and its environs were under renewed attack from the terrorists but did not give details.
In two posts on its twitter handle yesterday night, the DHQ said: “Troops are currently engaging another large number of heavily armed terrorists trying to enter the town. The troops are determined to frustrate the desperate efforts of terrorists against Konduga and environs.”
A security source said in Borno that the army’s improved collaboration with local vigilantes and the police produced a remarkable result against the militants on Tuesday night, but did not give any casualty figure.
“All I can say is that this was another successful encounter because we repelled the attacks, killed many of them and recorded serious seizure of weapons. We are now working seriously on intelligence report and God is on our side. We did not rest on our oars after the Friday encounter knowing fully that the insurgents would come again,” he said.
A vigilante member, Usman Musa, also said: “Just like the first encounter, almost all the insurgents that went to Konduga were rounded up and killed”.
An armoured personnel carrier, five Hilux vehicles, many assault rifles and other deadly weapons were recovered from the insurgents. Soldiers who brought the seized weapons and vehicles to Maiduguri yesterday were applauded by residents who mobilized to the main road along Bama and Baga around 11am. Video clips of most of the insurgents killed in Konduga were freely shared among youths.
A Defence Headquarters statement yesterday said soldiers battled for 12 hours and successfully crushed another attempt by the terrorists who were on a revenge mission to Konduga on Tuesday.
“Troops are now combing the vicinity in a cordon and search operation to determine the heavy casualties suffered by the terrorists in the encounter”, the statement said.
In a related development, the insurgents yesterday laid siege along Maiduguri-Damaturu road and again ran into serious confrontation with soldiers. Many passengers waited at the Borno Express motor park for the road to clear. Around 1pm, commuters who arrived Maiduguri from Damaturu, Kano and other places said they saw soldiers conveying corpses.
The encounter in Konduga lasted between 6pm on Tuesday until the early hours of Wednesday.
Bashir Abbas, a senior vigilante official who participated in the operation said over 250 insurgents were killed by the troops in Konduga who got reinforcement from Maiduguri in the dead of the night.
“Those killed in Konduga were up to 250. They confronted the soldiers in three batches but were all repelled.
“A different set of the terrorists yesterday took over the highway at Ngamdu in Kaga LGA along the Maiduguri- Damaturu road where over 150 of them were killed,” Bashir said.
Our correspondent saw many dead bodies at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) which some health officials said were those of the insurgents. A senior security official said the ultimate target of the insurgents was to attack Maiduguri, the state capital. He said the insurgents appeared on the highway after manipulating their way through bushes in Yobe and Borno States, adding that another APC was recovered from them.
The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) said late yesterday said that Konduga and its environs were under renewed attack from the terrorists but did not give details.
In two posts on its twitter handle yesterday night, the DHQ said: “Troops are currently engaging another large number of heavily armed terrorists trying to enter the town. The troops are determined to frustrate the desperate efforts of terrorists against Konduga and environs.”
A security source said in Borno that the army’s improved collaboration with local vigilantes and the police produced a remarkable result against the militants on Tuesday night, but did not give any casualty figure.
“All I can say is that this was another successful encounter because we repelled the attacks, killed many of them and recorded serious seizure of weapons. We are now working seriously on intelligence report and God is on our side. We did not rest on our oars after the Friday encounter knowing fully that the insurgents would come again,” he said.
A vigilante member, Usman Musa, also said: “Just like the first encounter, almost all the insurgents that went to Konduga were rounded up and killed”.
An armoured personnel carrier, five Hilux vehicles, many assault rifles and other deadly weapons were recovered from the insurgents. Soldiers who brought the seized weapons and vehicles to Maiduguri yesterday were applauded by residents who mobilized to the main road along Bama and Baga around 11am. Video clips of most of the insurgents killed in Konduga were freely shared among youths.
A Defence Headquarters statement yesterday said soldiers battled for 12 hours and successfully crushed another attempt by the terrorists who were on a revenge mission to Konduga on Tuesday.
“Troops are now combing the vicinity in a cordon and search operation to determine the heavy casualties suffered by the terrorists in the encounter”, the statement said.
In a related development, the insurgents yesterday laid siege along Maiduguri-Damaturu road and again ran into serious confrontation with soldiers. Many passengers waited at the Borno Express motor park for the road to clear. Around 1pm, commuters who arrived Maiduguri from Damaturu, Kano and other places said they saw soldiers conveying corpses.
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