6 soldiers killed, ammunition stolen as B/Haram dislodges troops

Not fewer than six soldiers have been killed and ammunition carted away when armed men suspected to be the ISWAP faction of Boko Haram insurgents attacked and dislodged military formations in the Lake Chad region, a security source has said.

It was learnt that the affected soldiers were attached to the 153 Infantry Task Force and 22 Armoured Brigades in Marte Local Government Area of Borno State. They were attacked at about 10 am on Monday during which an unspecified number were also wounded.

According to the security source, “they (ISWAP) came in their hundreds. Our troops fought but the soldiers were overwhelmed. The troops put up a strong fight to defend their base,” the source said, adding that some soldiers were yet to rejoin their colleagues who have now been moved to Dikwa.

Our correspondent reports that Monday’s attack on Marte town by the ISWAP made it the third on the area in a month despite large number of troops in the town.