Nigerian Army repel Boko Haram attack in Yobe

The Nigerian Army said troops of 159 Battalion, have repelled an attack by Boko Haram.

The soldiers were deployed at Kanama, Yunusari Local Government Area of Yobe State.

According to an army spokesperson, Injoka Irabo, the terrorists came on Monday evening in their numbers through the border town of Kanama and began to shoot sporadically. But they were engaged by the vigilant troops.

In a press release, he said although two soldiers sustained injuries in the battle, the troops inflicted heavy casualties on the attackers. He said the terrorists were overwhelmed.

“Troops of 159 Battalion, Forward Operational Base (FOB), Sector 2, Operation LAFIYA DOLE, deployed at Kanama, Yunusari Local Government Area of Yobe State, have today evening thwarted Boko Haram terrorists’ attempted incursion into the border town of Kanama.

“The terrorists came in at about 5:30 pm and started shooting sporadically. The vigilant troops of the FOB engaged them.

“Consequently, the terrorists were overwhelmed by the superior firepower of the gallant troops of 159 Battalion and the well-coordinated air support from the Air Component of Operation LAFIYA DOLE. This resulted in inflicting casualty on the terrorists, while some of them retreated with gunshot wounds.

“The resilient troops have embarked on (a) hot pursuit of the fleeing surviving attackers towards the border with Niger Republic. Unfortunately, two of our gallant soldiers sustained injuries, but they are in stable condition and receiving medical attention,” the statement highlighted.

Mr Irabo added that further details on the terrorists’ casualties and recoveries would be provided on completion of the mop up and pursuit operations.

The Boko Haram insurgency in Northern Nigeria has caused tens of thousands of deaths since 2009. Although the terrorists have been largely limited to Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states since 2015, they still carry out attacks on civilian and military targets there.


Credit: Usman Audu/Premium Times