Boko Haram/ISWAP attack Ngoshe community in Borno
…Ndume confirms casualties, abductions
By Ndahi Marama, Maiduguri
Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume, representing Borno South Senatorial District, has confirmed that an unspecified number of civilians, soldiers and insurgents were killed when suspected Boko Haram/ISWAP fighters attacked Ngoshe community in Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State.
Ndume also said more than 100 residents were missing or abducted during the attack, while thousands of civilians, mostly women and children, were displaced and are currently taking refuge in Pulka community.
The lawmaker disclosed this in an interview on Thursday in Maiduguri while condemning the attack, which occurred on Tuesday evening. He also called for intensified military operations in the Sambisa Forest and the Mandara Mountains to curb the activities of insurgents in southern Borno.
Ngoshe is one of the communities recently resettled around the Mandara Mountains following years of displacement caused by insurgency.
According to Ndume, details of the incident were still sketchy, but information available indicated that several fleeing terrorists were neutralised by the air component of the Joint Task Force North-East, Operation Hadin Kai.
He, however, lamented that the Chief Imam of Ngoshe, some community elders and soldiers were among those killed during the attack.
“The military base in the community was dislodged, with some major equipment destroyed. Residential houses and property worth millions of naira were also set ablaze,” Ndume said.
Security sources said the insurgents launched the assault shortly after residents broke their fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, adding that the attackers reportedly overwhelmed the military formation with superior firepower.
Ndume urged the federal government to strengthen ongoing counter-insurgency operations, including Operation Desert Sanity V in Sambisa Forest, noting that the operation had begun to yield results but should be sustained.
He called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to equip security agencies with more fighter jets and modern military hardware to end persistent terrorist attacks in the North-East.
The senator also expressed concern over what he described as inadequate equipment available to troops at the frontlines, alleging that security forces lack sufficient Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles and other advanced weapons.
Despite the challenges, Ndume commended the efforts of the Nigerian Armed Forces and the Borno State government under Governor Babagana Zulum for their sacrifices in the fight against insurgency.
He noted that the government’s efforts had led to the resettlement of many internally displaced persons to liberated communities across the North-East.
Meanwhile, community leaders have appealed for urgent humanitarian support for displaced residents from Ngoshe now taking refuge in Pulka.
In a joint appeal on social media, Malam Idrissa Hamman and Engineer Aliyu Shehu, who are coordinating relief efforts under the platform of the Gwoza Youth Forum, called for donations of food items, clothing, blankets and other essential supplies to support affected families.
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