EIGHTEEN, and not 30 persons, died in the Boko Haram ambush on the convoy of Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno State, the Military has clarified.
The figure it said, included 10 policemen, four soldiers and four civilians.
The Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. John Enenche, said the victims were killed by explosion from the multiple Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) planted on the road by the terrorists.
He said in a statement that troops on hot pursuit of the insurgents successfully repelled the attack and recovered three vehicles.
There had been media reports, quoting a foreign agency, which said that the death toll in the attack had hit 30, as of Saturday.
But Enenche’s statement said, “The convoy of the Borno State Civilians Relocation Committee comprising Armed Forces of Nigeria, Nigeria Police Force and Civilian Joint Task Force was ambushed by members of the BHT/ISWAP at Barwati village on 25 of September 2020.
“The attack/ambush was however successfully repelled by the gallant troops. Sadly, a total of 18 lives including 4 soldiers, 10 Policemen and 4 civilians were lost during the sad incident.
“Troops on hot pursuit of the insurgents successfully recovered three vehicles. Two of the vehicles belonging to the Nigeria Police that were earlier carted away by the terrorists during the attack. Similarly, one BHT gun truck was also captured.”
He explained that the casualties recorded were as a result of the explosion from the multiple Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) planted on the road by the terrorists.
“The Nigerian Army has since deployed bomb and IED disposal teams to ensure effective route scanning and clearance to forestall future occurrence,” he added.
