At least 36 soldiers and mobile police officers were reportedly killed after Boko Haram insurgents launched coordinated attacks on two military formations in the Gujba Local Government Area of Yobe State.
PrimeTimes Nigeria reports that the attacks were said to have occurred around 1 am on Friday and targeted the Theatre Training Centre in Buniyadi and the 27 Task Force Brigade in Buni Gari.
Gujba is the hometown of Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni.
Soldiers who survived the attacks told SaharaReporters that the insurgents stormed both camps almost simultaneously, forcing troops into gun battles that lasted several hours.
One of the soldiers said the attackers overwhelmed parts of the formations during the midnight assault.
He said, “My camp was attacked by Boko Haram. In 27TF BDE Buni Gari, three soldiers were killed in action, and the attack started by 1:00 a.m. The Boko Haram were attacking us and at the same time attacking our neighbouring camp.
“This is in Gujba Local Government in Yobe State, at Governor Mai Mala Buni’s hometown. The names of the two camps attacked are Theatre Training Centre Buniyadi and 27 Task Force Brigade Buni Gari.”
Another soldier confirmed the attack, saying the two formations were hit around the same time.
He said, “Good evening, bro. So yeah, last night was bloody. The attack happened in two locations near our neighbouring camp, which was the NSF. So we were in Bunigari, which is the governor’s town. The other camp is in Buniyadi. The two camps are very close.
“So, unfortunately, we started hearing that Boko Haram was attacking Buniyadi last night around one o’clock a.m. They started attacking them. We were preparing to go and reinforce them. Before you know it, we started hearing gunshots in our own camp too.
“So we could not go and get involved with the Buniyadi camp. Those in Buniyadi are the ones in charge of training soldiers coming to the Northeast with the police. Those are the MOPOLs. They are meant for training those people. But we are not training anybody. We are in Gujba Local Government, which is the governor’s town.”
Training Centre Records More Casualties
The soldier said three soldiers were killed at the 27 Task Force Brigade, while the Theatre Training Centre recorded a higher casualty figure.
He added, “But in our 27 Task Force Brigade, we lost three soldiers. There are casualties at the training centre too.
“Information sharing on the platform shows that the training centre has more casualties. Thirty-three people were killed: 17 mobile police officers that came for training were killed in action, 10 soldiers that came for training were killed in action, while six soldiers permanently deployed there were also killed in action. Yesterday was bloody, bro.”
Based on information from military sources, the total casualty figure from both attacks currently stands at 36.