Boko Haram militants have seized control of Kirawa, a border town in Borno State, forcing more than 5,000 residents to flee into neighbouring Cameroon, community leaders and survivors said on Friday.
The overnight assault on Thursday left Kirawa deserted after fighters torched the district head’s palace, a military barracks, and dozens of homes. “I was left with no option but to flee to Cameroon,” district head Abdulrahman Abubakar told Reuters by phone. “Residents boarded trucks to seek refuge across the border, while others ran to Maiduguri,” the state capital.
Boko Haram claimed responsibility and released a video showing its fighters burning down the military post while chanting “victory belongs to God.”
Kirawa lies in Borno, the epicentre of a 16-year insurgency by Boko Haram and its ISWAP offshoot, which has intensified attacks this year on civilians and security forces. In recent weeks, militants have briefly overrun army bases and communities before being repelled by reinforcements.
The raid comes less than two weeks after insurgents overran a barracks in the nearby border town of Banki, forcing soldiers to retreat and seizing weapons.
Yakubu Mabba Ali Kirawa, head of the town’s development association, appealed for urgent military reinforcement, warning that only vigilantes and residents remain to defend the area after a multinational task force withdrew in August following another attack.
Source:Africa Publicity
