Eighteen members of the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) were killed during an attack in the Dikwa Local Government Area of Borno State on Sunday, May 16A source, who asked to remain anonymous, told RNI reporter Rawa Bukar Tela that the insurgents arrived at about 11pm.
He said 18 members of the extremist organisation were killed by soldiers. The military also took two weapons from the attackers.
“The insurgents did not even come close to Dikwa town. They stood afar and started shooting sporadically. But soldiers in the area responded quickly and killed 18 insurgents and took two guns from them,” he said.
The source described the soldiers as brave and said they stood firm and fought hard to beat back the insurgents.
“These soldiers did not run away or hide from the attackers. They took on the attackers and it was impressive to see them fighting for their people.”
The source said no civilians were injured or wounded in the attack and that peace had been restored in the Dikwa Local Government Area.
He urged residents of the town to continue to provide helpful information to the military about suspicious activities in the town.
“If people know or hear of anything dubious, they should let the military know as soon as possible. In that way, attacks can be intercepted. Civilians and the military need to work together.”
Sunday’s extremist attack was the fourth since March.
According to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM), Dikwa was attacked by insurgents on March 1 and again on March 2. It then came under fire on May 10, leading to a new wave of population displacement.
As a result of the attacks, 1,346 individuals were displaced from the Dikwa Local Government Areas towards the local government area of Jere and the Maiduguri Metropolitan Council. They arrived at Dikwa Motor Park from various camps and communities on their way to Jere and Maiduguri.
The DTM showed that between May 8 and May 14, 1,197 individuals had returned to Dikwa Local Government Area from Maiduguri since the first attack on March 1.
It could not be confirmed whether any people had fled after Sunday night’s attack.
