A day after the defense headquarters says Boko Haram is “weakened enemies” of the country and no longer have “sovereignty or authority” on any territory in the country, Jihadists aligned with the Islamic State militant group has taken over a military base in Borno state, Nigeria.
Agence France-Presse(AFP) reports that the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) overpowered Nigerian security forces on Friday night in an exchange of gunfire at the military base in the town of Marte near Lake Chad.
Machine-gun wielding fighters from Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) attacked the base in the town of Marte in the Lake Chad area overnight Friday into Saturday, two sources said.
“The priority now is to reclaim the base from the terrorists and an operation is underway,” one of the sources said.
“We took a hit from ISWAP terrorists. They raided the base in Marte after a fierce battle.”
The second source said the army “incurred losses” but it was not yet clear how many people had died or the level of destruction inflicted by the insurgents.
According to the Aljazeera report, the army statement said troops “tactically withdrew” to defend against an attack outside Marte. Troops had “effectively destroyed” seven gun trucks and ‘decimated” an unconfirmed number of attackers, it said.
However, the terrorist group in a statement on its Amaq news channel on Telegram claiming responsibility for the attack, adding that seven people had been killed, and one captured, and that its fighters had seized weapons, ammunition and six four-wheel-drive vehicles, as well as burning down the army barracks.
