Boko Haram kills 74 in church, village

Boko Haram insurgents on Sunday evening attacked another  village in Borno  State,   killing a soldier and 51 other persons.

About 16 others, including policemen  and traders, were injured  while  300 houses were  set ablaze  by the insurgents  in Kawuri, Konduga Local Government Area of the state.

Another  set of the Boko Haram fighters,   armed with guns and explosives, had earlier on Sunday  killed 22 people at a  church service in  Waga Chakawa, Adamawa State.

The Kawuri  village  attackers were said to have planted several explosives in  the community  after attacking the nearby weekly market as  traders  were busy getting ready to close their stalls.

An eyewitness said those who sustained  varying degrees of burns were rushed to the Konduga General Hospital and the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital for treatment.

Bulama Kuliri,  a resident of the village, told  journalists that the attack lasted for more than four hours.

He said, “I believe more than 50 people were  killed in the attack because the whole village  was  razed by the Boko Haram  people.   There were   loud explosions from different directions  and dead  bodies littered  many parts  of  the village.”

Another eyewitness, Ari Kolomi, told the Associated Press that “no house in the village was left standing.”

“The gunmen were more than 50 and they were using explosives and heavy-sounding guns,” he added.

A soldier said two more improvised explosive devices exploded  early on Monday morning, narrowly missing security personnel who were  busy collecting corpses.

One of the police officers  that evacuated  the  wounded victims, also confirmed that at least 52 people were killed and 16  injured.

The state Police Commissioner, Lawan Tanko, confirmed the attack but said he was awaiting details on casualties.

A protocol officer in  the Government House told journalists that Governor Kashim Shettima was advised   to cancel his “planned visit” to the community  because “the military  were  still conducting an operation in the area.”

Shettima later met behind closed doors  with military and police officers in the state over the incident.

In Waga Chakawa, witnesses told Reuters that insurgents  set off bombs and fired into the congregation in the Catholic Church  in a village in Adamawa State.

They  said the insurgents also  burnt  houses and took  residents hostage during  the four-hour siege.

The spokesman for the Catholic Diocese of Yola, Rev. Father Raymond Danbouye, said those killed were buried at a funeral on Monday.

In  the last one week, over 100 persons have been killed in attacks  by  members of the terror group. These attacks, according to the United Nations, led to 6,000 persons fleeing to neighbouring countries like Cameroon and Niger Republic. On  January 14  for instance, a car bomb exploded in Maiduguri, killing about 70 people. Communities  like  Kwaljiri, Kaya, Ngawo Fate, Limanti, Njaba, Yahuri, Mude, Wala and Alau in the Damboa, Konduga and Gwoza Local Government Areas have all been sacked by the  terrorists.