A yet-to-be-confirmed number of soldiers were injured in an overnight attack on a military base in Borno State by suspected Boko Haram terrorists.
Military sources told SaharaReporters that the attack occurred in the early hours of Monday when the insurgents launched an assault on the Forward Operation Base in Gajiram, headquarters of Nganzai Local Government Area of Borno State.
In several distress voice notes obtained by SaharaReporters from injured soldiers at the base, the troops said the terrorists stormed the military facility in large numbers at about 1:00 a.m., allegedly with the aim of overrunning the location.
“God Almighty is on our side. We overpowered them that overnight with superior firing from all corners of the base. We killed many of them,” one of the soldiers said.
The soldiers, however, said several of their colleagues sustained injuries during the attack.
“Some of our colleagues were seriously injured. We are waiting for the Army authorities to come and evacuate them for urgent treatment,” another voice note revealed.
SaharaReporters further gathered that the terrorists allegedly set fire to several operational vehicles, ammunition and other military assets during the attack.
The troops subsequently appealed to military authorities for urgent reinforcement, ammunition and logistics support.
“We need help from Sector 3 Headquarters in Monguno for more reinforcements. The Headquarters Theatre Command is also close to our base, just 56 kilometres from Maiduguri,” the soldier added.
“We killed many of the Boko Haram fighters. We just want reinforcements now. We need more ammunition; we need extra vehicles.
“All the personnel really tried. We did our best. None of us left the base. We have been fighting them since. Only God knows what the aim of the terrorists is. They entered the base but we were more intelligent than them. We were expecting fighter jets to come as reinforcement but none was seen. We need logistics now.”
Efforts to obtain the Nigerian Army’s response were unsuccessful, as calls placed to Colonel Onyechi Appolonia Anele, the Army spokesperson, regarding the attack and reported request for reinforcements were not answered.
SaharaReporters has in several previous reports highlighted complaints by Nigerian soldiers fighting insurgency in the Northeast over poor welfare, inadequate equipment, lack of medical care for injured troops and delays in receiving reinforcements during attacks.
Some soldiers have also complained that injured colleagues often die because of delays in evacuation and inadequate medical facilities, while operational vehicles destroyed by insurgents are not promptly replaced.
Families of fallen soldiers have similarly raised concerns over unpaid allowances and death benefits, which they said had further affected morale among troops on the frontline.
(SaharaReporters)