No fewer than 16 people, including three members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF), have lost their lives in multiple attacks coordinated by fighters suspected to be members of the Islamic State West African Province (ISWAP) in Borno State, sources said.
It was gathered that 13 metal scavengers were shot dead by ISWAP fighters in Goni Kurmi village in Bama Local Government Area of the state on Saturday.
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Security intelligence told Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency expert and security analyst in Lake Chad that the victims were 11 males and 2 females.
He said the fighters, who came in about four utility vehicles and some others riding on motorcycles, surrounded the areas before unleashing terror on them.
Sources said dozens of other people had fled the area.
Similarly, three members of the CJTF were killed when suspected ISWAP fighters attacked them and abducted humanitarian workers in the northern part of Borno State on Friday.
Three other humanitarian workers were also reportedly kidnapped by the insurgents.
The incident occurred in Monguno Local Government Area Friday night.
It was learnt that the attackers who stormed the town through the axis of Marte, through the Gana Ari community in Monguno, went straight to a compound of humanitarian workers and began shooting sporadically, wounding one person in the process.
“They attempted to steal three vehicles but could not take them out of the compound. They later abducted three workers and left the compound,” the source said.
It would be recalled that in the past four weeks, more than 60 scavengers have been killed at Modu village in Kala-Balge and Dikwa local government areas respectively.
The Nigerian Army was yet to issue any statement on the latest attack at the time of filing this report last night.
