One Nigerian army officer and seven soldiers have lost their lives after Boko Haram insurgents ambushed a military patrol team in Borno, military sources said.
Five soldiers were wounded and two still missing in action as of late Tuesday, sources said. A Boko Haram fighter was killed while an assault rifle was recovered from the attackers.
The ambush on 156 Task Force Battalion occurred at about 1:00 p.m. on Tuesday in Mainok, about 60 kilometres west of Maiduguri.
Soldiers have recovered the bodies of their fallen colleagues and moved the wounded to a medical facility for treatment, military sources said.
Two gun trucks and three anti-aircraft equipment could not be accounted for following the attack, although it was not immediately clear whether they were carted away by the insurgents or temporarily misplaced during the exchange of fire.
Sagir Musa, a spokesperson for the Nigerian Army, did not return requests for comments on the attack Wednesday morning.
Regrouping
Following weeks of relative calm, Boko Haram appears to have regrouped in recent days, striking civilian and military targets along the highway leading into Maiduguri.
The group has killed or abducted many residents and aid workers in the region over the past week.
The implementation last year of ‘super camps’ reduced soldiers’ vulnerability to incessant attacks on military units in the troubled North-east, where Boko Haram jihadists have killed thousands since they declared war against the Nigerian state in 2009.
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