No fewer than Six soldiers were killed on Sunday when suspected Boko Haram insurgents waylaid the infantrymen at Banki Junction in Borno state.
The attack in Banki, which is 130 km southeast of Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, is the latest in a plethora of attacks by the terror group on Borno communities.
According to TheCable, Two sergeants, two lance corporals and two privates were confirmed to be victims of the attack.
LagosTimes understands that the incident happened on Sunday morning when about two companies of soldiers from the army’s 151 task force battalion in the area were on a ”rescue patrol”.
“There were about 70 soldiers who were sent on that mission,” TheCable quoted a military source to have said.
“We had information that some people were being held captives by the insurgents, and that was why the soldiers were mobilised to carry out a rescue patrol.
“The soldiers ran into ambush a few kilometres that they took off, and six of them were killed.
“We later sent in a reinforcement to clear the area and recover their bodies.”
When contacted on the attack, the army spokesperson Sagir Musa said he has no information about it.
“I don’t know what you want me to confirm because as I speak to you I’m not in Nigeria. I’m on course in London. Thank you,” he said.
The Boko Haram insurgency in Northern Nigeria has caused over 30,000 deaths and displaced millions of others, mainly in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states, according to the United Nations.