Boko Haram opens fire on villagers in Borno; ...scores killed

Suspected Boko Haram gunmen opened fire on villagers and torched a number of buildings in a new attack in northeast Nigeria, witnesses said on Monday.

Resident Ahmad Ali told AFP that roughly two dozen assailants, who were “obviously Boko Haram fighters” stormed the village of Kwajaffa at dusk on Sunday and ordered residents out of their homes.

Locals thought the Islamist insurgents “were going to preach and leave”, but in fact they “opened fire on the crowd”, Ali said.

Ali said the death toll likely passed two dozen but no other eyewitness could be reached immediately to confirm the figures.

“They then went on setting fire to homes, burning half of the village before they left,” he added.

Kwajaffa lies in the southern part of Borno, one of the states hit hardest during Boko Haram’s deadly six-year uprising.

Details of attacks often take time to emerge, given the poor communication infrastructure in the embattled region.

Babagana Mustapha said a relative who fled the attack in Kwajaffa arrived at his home in southern Borno’s commercial hub of Biu, 35 kilometres (22 miles) from Kwajaffa, at 11.30 pm on Sunday.

This relative reported similar details concerning the attack, including a number of casualties, Mustapha told AFP.

Credit: ThisDay