Not less than 40 Nigerian troops were killed by Boko Haram sect members in an ambush attack in Borno State.The attack occurred less than two months after 20 soldiers were killed by militants in the same area.According to Defence sources, at least 40 Nigerian soldiers were killed and 65 others went missing in a deadly ambush by suspected members of the extremist group, Boko Haram, in the sect's stronghold in Borno State.Army authorities are miffed by the incident, and have ordered an investigation into the suspected operation blunder that gave the militants such an upper hand. The commanding officer of the unit that carried out the operation has now been removed from his post, officials say.The casualty, one of the heaviest for the military in its campaign against the militant group in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, occurred along the Baga –Maiduguri road on Friday, September 13, in what sources described as "a classic case of operational and communication failure".A detachment of soldiers under the 134 Battalion of the 12 Brigade under the Multi National Joint Task Force, MNJTF, stationed in Kangarwa village in Kukawa local government, had conducted a reconnaissance to gather intelligence around the area, during which they established the presence of previously unnoticed Boko Haram camps.According to a source, the soldiers returned to their base and filed a report recommending aerial bombardment of the area, preparatory for a ground operation by troops.But that plan was cancelled at the final minutes by an unnamed top official without formal communication to the more than 100 troops that had already advanced to the area.The soldiers were trapped in the ambush under heavy fire from the militants who had surrounded the area, leaving at least 40 soldiers killed. Some 65 others have remained missing.
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
40 Nigerian Troops, JTF Killed By Boko Haram Sect In Borno Ambush
Not less than 40 Nigerian troops were killed by Boko Haram sect members in an ambush attack in Borno State.The attack occurred less than two months after 20 soldiers were killed by militants in the same area.According to Defence sources, at least 40 Nigerian soldiers were killed and 65 others went missing in a deadly ambush by suspected members of the extremist group, Boko Haram, in the sect's stronghold in Borno State.Army authorities are miffed by the incident, and have ordered an investigation into the suspected operation blunder that gave the militants such an upper hand. The commanding officer of the unit that carried out the operation has now been removed from his post, officials say.The casualty, one of the heaviest for the military in its campaign against the militant group in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, occurred along the Baga –Maiduguri road on Friday, September 13, in what sources described as "a classic case of operational and communication failure".A detachment of soldiers under the 134 Battalion of the 12 Brigade under the Multi National Joint Task Force, MNJTF, stationed in Kangarwa village in Kukawa local government, had conducted a reconnaissance to gather intelligence around the area, during which they established the presence of previously unnoticed Boko Haram camps.According to a source, the soldiers returned to their base and filed a report recommending aerial bombardment of the area, preparatory for a ground operation by troops.But that plan was cancelled at the final minutes by an unnamed top official without formal communication to the more than 100 troops that had already advanced to the area.The soldiers were trapped in the ambush under heavy fire from the militants who had surrounded the area, leaving at least 40 soldiers killed. Some 65 others have remained missing.
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