Thirty people were killed Friday in an ambush by jihadists against a convoy carrying the governor of Borno State (north-eastern Nigeria), according to a report released Saturday by security sources.
Another jihadist ambush in the Lake Chad region. Thirty people were killed on Friday, September 25, in a jihadists attack on a convoy transporting the governor of Borno State in northeastern Nigeria, AFP security sources reported on Saturday, September 26.
A previous assessment made Friday reported fifteen deaths. The latter doubled according to two security sources. They said that twelve policemen, five soldiers, nine civilians, and four members of a government-backed militia are among the victims.
“The count has increased to 30, because many bodies were found in the area after the attack,” said one of the sources, adding that “many people were injured.
A convoy of vehicles of Borno state governor Babagana Umara Zulum near the town of Baga on the shore of Lake Chad was ambushed on Friday by jihadists linked to the Islamic State Organization. The governor, according to security sources, is unharmed.
On Saturday, another security source also reported 30 dead in the attack, adding that jihadists had seized eight vehicles.
“The terrorists fled with an armored personnel carrier, a truck with guns and six utility vehicles … that were in the convoy,” the source said.
A visit to prepare the return of displaced persons from conflicts with jihadists
The police reported in a statement that the attack on the “security convoy” killed eight police officers and three members of a government-backed militia. The police also reported that 13 people were injured, stating that the attack was “successfully repelled.
The governor of Borno State was visiting Baga as part of the preparations for the return of thousands of people driven out of the city by jihadists in 2014. He was evacuated by helicopter to the garrison town of Monguno, 60 kilometers away, and joined Baga in a convoy under high security, said one of the sources.
Roads through Borno state are dangerous because of the presence of jihadi fighters from the Islamic State Organization in West Africa (ISWAP) and their rivals in Boko Haram, who blockade roads, kill or abduct travelers.
More than 36,000 people have been killed in violence in the region since 2009 and more than 2 million people are still unable to return to their homes.
The United Nations estimates that nearly 7 million people depend on humanitarian aid to survive in the Lake Chad region, which is on its knees after a decade of conflict against jihadist groups.
Source: France24
