At least three Nigerian soldiers were killed, while
four suffered critical injuries after a roadside bomb
ripped through a military convoy on Monday
morning, PREMIUM TIMES has learnt.
A lieutenant-colonel was amongst those killed in the
attack, alongside his driver and orderly, PREMIUM
TIMES learnt.
The development marked the latest loss for the
military, which has grappled with a prolonged
insurgency in Nigeria’s northeastern region since
2009.
The loss of the lieutenant-colonel came roughly six
months after the army lost Ibrahim Sakaba, a
lieutenant colonel and troop commander, in the
battle that claimed nearly 120 soldiers in Metele,
Borno State.
PREMIUM TIMES has withheld the slain
commander’s identity to allow the military the
needed time to formally notify his loved ones.
The officers of 145 Task Force Battalion were on an
anti-terrorism patrol when an improvised explosive
devise planted by Boko Haram terrorists went off in
Borno State at about 9:30 a.m. Monday, military
sources with knowledge of the incident told
PREMIUM TIMES Monday night.
The attack occurred along Mauli-Borgozo Road, which
is one of the few settlements where Boko Haram
elements continue to hibernate in the restive North-
east, sources said.
A reinforcement was dispatched from 29 Task Force
Brigade in Benisheikh and 154 Task Force Battalion
to recover bodies and rescue the wounded soldiers.
The status of the rescue operation could not be
immediately ascertained as of press time Monday
night.
Two gun trucks and a Tata truck were amongst the
military hardware damaged by the explosion, sources
said.
Security level was immediately heightened, it was
learnt.
A spokesperson for the Nigerian Army did not
immediately return requests for comments on
Monday night. The military has not issued a public
statement about the development as of 7:30 p.m.
Monday.
The attack came as Nigerian troops were regaining
control of vast areas where pockets of insurgents
were still hibernating between Borno, Yobe and
Adamawa, the three states worse hit by the 10-year-
long insurgency.
At least four Boko Haram suspects were killed
during battles to fortify some villages in Borno; the
military said at the weekend.
