It was yet another day of blood in troubled Borno State as Boko Haram fighters yesterday took the fight to a military checkpoint in Gwoza while also ambushing travellers at Benisheikh along Maiduguri-Damaturu highway. At least 29 persons were reported dead in both encounters.

In the Gwoza incident, 19 terrorists lost their lives when Nigerian troops bravely confronted invading Boko Haram fighters. It is not yet clear if any casualties were suffered by the troops.

Reports said the terrorists had hoped to overwhelm the soldiers by emerging from different directions in Gwoza hills, after which they threw Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) into the direction of the soldiers and then opening fire on them. They, however, miscalculated, as the troops bravely returned fire and successfully battled them for about three hours.

“The insurgents suffered heavy casualties as 19 of them were killed in an encounter with combined team of military and policemen attached to the Counter Terrorism Squad (CTS), who quickly mobilised to the scene of the attack,” a Gwoza resident told newsmen on phone.

In another encounter at Benisheikh along Maiduguri-Damaturu highway, the terrorists who reportedly emerged from Sambisa forest and attacked travelers killed at least ten civilians before security men on patrol came to the rescue.

The troops, according to a local driver, Ali Musa, “responded swiftly and mobilised to the scene and succeeded in killing some of the terrorists in a gun duel, others however fled inside the bush.”

Boko Haram, which claims to be opposed to Western education, has waged a five-year war in parts of northern Nigeria, including the vicinity of the capital city Abuja, where it bombed a busy area of Nyanya on April 14 and May 1, killing about 100 and injuring about 300. At least 1,500 have been killed this year alone by the sect.

•Photo shows Nigerian troops on duty in Borno.

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