At least 300 people were confirmed dead on Monday when Boko Haram insurgents in armoured vehicles stormed Gamborou Ngala town in Borno State.
The insurgents, it was learnt targeted a local market where many people were killed, before proceeding into the town to wreak more havoc.
Gamborou is the administrative headquarters of Ngala Local Government and is about 200km from Maiduguri, the state capital.
Senator Ahmed Zannah, who represents the senatorial district, the confirmed the killings, even as he said that the invaders spent 12 hours wreaking havoc on defenceless civilians.
Zannah, who spoke on a BBC Hausa report monitored in Maiduguri yesterday,said several people were injured in the attack, while almost all the houses and shops in the town were razed.
He pointed out that the attackers were armed with dangerous weapons, including Armored Personnel Carrier, APC, Improvised Explosive Devices, IEDs, petrol bombs, assault rifles and Rocket Propelled Launchers, RPGs.
“The attackers stormed the communities in the night when residents were still sleeping, setting ablaze houses and shot residents who tried to escaped from the inferno.“
About 300 persons were confirmed dead after the incident, with several others injured. Almost all the houses in the communities were destroyed by the hoodlums who threw IEDs at the buildings.
“My brother who was at the scene of the attack told me that the actual number of the dead cannot be ascertained but at least they are up to 300. In fact as we spoke he wept following the high number of the dead bodies which littered the market,” he said.
According to him, the security forces earlier deployed to the area, moved to the Lake Chad axis when they received intelligence report that some gunmen were sighted with the abducted schoolgirls moving to the area.
“Initially there were many security operatives in the town to secure it from possible attacks.
“However upon receiving information over the movements of insurgents with kidnapped Chibok schoolgirls towards Lake Chad area, they withdraw and moved further to confront the gunmen.
“It was just an hour after their withdrawal that the terrorists indeed thetown, shooting everyone at sight and setting buildings on fire.
“So far 200 vehicles and thousands of houses, shops and an outfit of the Nigerian Customs Service, NCS were all burnt,” he added.
A local government official, who declinedto identify himself, also confirmed the casualty figure.
“It is really a terrible situation, we had wanted to rush relief materials to the area to provide temporary succor to the victims. But we were prevailed upon by security agents to shelve our plans for security reasons,” he said.
The official appealed to the state and Federal Government to assist the area with resources towards rehabilitating the victims.
Source: National Mirror
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