Boko Haram Kills 32 In Attack On Three Towns

ON a day the President was railing against terrorists and the military announced a change of strategy, the news broke yesterday of a Boko Haram attack on Adamawa State. No fewer than 32 people died in the Wednesday night attack, which followed Tuesday night’s massacre of scores of school pupils in Yobe. The insurgents, driving in a convoy of new Hilux pick up vans, according to eyewitnesses, hit sleepy communities of Shuwa, Kirchinga and Kibla before proceeding to Michika.

Security agents at checkpoints reportedly scampered for safety as the gunmen, who operated for about five hours in the area, approached. “They retreated because of the large number of the attackers and the sophisticated weapons they bore,” eyewitnesses said. Some Michika residents said they slept in the hills and nearby bushes during the night attack. They told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on telephone yesterday that the attackers arrived in the town around 9p.m.

“They burnt three banks, a police station, shops and part of the Michika Local Government Council secretariat. “They came in nine Toyota Hilux vans, firing guns and throwing explosives,” a resident who simply identified himself as Fide said. Fide said he saw bodies of two victims. “One of the bodies is that of a worker of Bank of Agriculture,” he added. “They burnt places of worship and the house of a former commissioner, Idris Nuhu in Shuwa village,” said a resident, Mr. Sule Idris.

Spokesman of the 23rd Armoured Brigade, Yola, Capt. Ja’afaru Nuhu, said the insurgents attacked communities in Madagali and Michika local government areas. The chairman of the Madagali Local Government Area, Maina Ularamu, said “a large number of militants carried out three separate attacks on Shuwa and Kirchinga in my local government area and on neighbouring Michika”. “The gunmen divided themselves into three groups and separately attacked the three locations,” he told AFP. In Shuwa, several buildings were burnt, including a Christian theological college and a section of a secondary school.

A local resident, Kwaje Bitrus, said three bodies were recovered from the seminary and 20 were killed in and around the village. In Kirchinga, Samuel Garba said the gunmen were all dressed in military uniform — a tactic frequently employed by the militant fighters in previous, similar attacks. “The gunmen … killed eight people in our village and burnt many houses,” he added. “Four people have so far been confirmed dead in Michika,” said Abdul Kassim, who lives in the village. The dead were a young boy, who was trying to run away, and three security guards, he added.

Michika residents described earlier how people fled to the nearby foothills when the attackers arrived in trucks and on motorcycles. Michika resident Abdul Kassim said militants arrived at about 9:30 pm (2030 GMT) on Wednesday, “armed with RPGs (rocket propelled grenades) and explosives, which they hurled indiscriminately at homes and public buildings”. The attack reportedly lasted for more than four hours. Various residents said four banks were razed, as well as hundreds of shops, a police station, government buildings and dozens of homes. One witness, who requested for anonymity, said the village looked like a “war zone” and that 90 per cent of all businesses had been destroyed.

A pastor, who preferred anonymity, said: “When the soldiers at the military check points saw the number of the attackers, they retreated into the nearby bushes as the gunmen operated without challenge throughout the night.” The member representing Michika Constituency in the Adamawa State House of Assembly, Hon. Adamu Kamale, also confirmed the attack on Michika. President Jonathan, at a seminar in Abuja to mark Nigeria’s centenary celebration, called for action against terrorists. Speaker after speaker sympathised with Nigeria on the Boko Haram killings in Yobe.