10 killed, many passengers missing in Borno attack

Suspected Boko Haram insurgents have killed at least 10 persons and abducted an undisclosed number of passengers in Kaga Local Government Area of Borno State, sources have said.

The victims were mostly passengers whose vehicles had parked along the road following the restriction of vehicular movement in the evening.

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The incident occurred at 7 pm in Wassaram village, Ngamdu Ward of Kaga LGA on Tuesday night.

A source said many people were also injured and dozens of passengers were abducted by the attackers.

The security source, who would not want to be named, said the victims in five commercial vehicles had parked along the Maiduguri-Damaturu highway following the restriction of vehicular movement by troops.

“Boko Haram came to Wassaram at about 19:30pm on Tuesday.

“We had just finished the night (Muslim) prayer.

“They were about 30 in number and came in three special utility vehicles.

“They met some people as they entered the village.

“They told residents to move away from the place as some people were coming to attack them.

“So, people started running and unknown to them the men in the three vehicles were Boko Haram.

“They started firing at them.

“They killed 10 persons, several others were critically injured.

“I saw the corpses,” a vigilante source said.

Ali Saleh, who fled the attack, told Daily Trust by phone that “Many of us ran into nearby bushes.

“Many travelers are still missing.”

A member of the Civilian Joint Task Force, Mustapha Usman, said the attack on Wassaram targeted both villagers and travelers and lasted for about an hour.

“They operated freely.

“There was no resistance from anywhere.

“At first, we recovered eight corpses from the scene, but yesterday afternoon two more dead bodies were recovered from the buses.

“We have evacuated those injured to hospital.

“They burnt over 10 houses, while many people escaped with gunshot wounds.

“They went away with some passengers who were not familiar with the terrain,” Usman said.

A top security source also confirmed the attack which later heightened patrols around Wassaram community, which was approximately 15km from Ngamdu.

“Patrols started Tuesday evening around 7:30 pm,” he said.

He said passengers in five buses were attacked and the identities of those abducted were not yet ascertained.