Boko Haram attacks again in Yobe state: Insurgents kill 11 in Damaturu Posted by Vincent Ehiabhi An attack on a military checkpoint and a secondary school in Yobe State has left 11 people, including seven students, dead. In a statement, the military said the gunmen, believed to be members of an Boko Haram, attacked the boarding school in Damaturu on Sunday night, shooting sporadically and killing seven students and two teachers. Military spokesman, Lieutenant Eli Lazarus, disclosed that a military checkpoint was also attacked and soldiers fought a five-hour gun battle with the extremists. Three soldiers were injured in the battle. “Two teachers and two insurgents were killed during the separate attack, while seven innocent students lost their lives,” he said in a statement. “Three of the Boko Haram terrorists were arrested and are presently in (military) custody.” A student who survived by hiding under a dormitory bed said dozens of fighters who identified themselves as Boko Haram, ordered students to take them to the teachers’ quarters, where they opened fire on teachers and students. The student spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. Victims narrate ordeal Narrating their ordeal, the students said they noticed suspicious movements when the insurgents stormed the school at night, using torches tied to their foreheads. “Initially, we mistook them for army personnel on routine patrol but when they started shooting at random, we ran out of the school. Unfortunately, we could not call the JTF because there was no telecommunication service,” a student said. He said that they were also scared of approaching a nearby check-point because they could be mistaken for the gunmen. “The idea of going to the security men at the checkpoint occurred to us but we were scared of being mistaken for the attackers and shot by the security men. So, we stayed back at our hide-outs,” said another student. Following the experience, some students said they would leave the school. “I am not sure of coming back to this school because of this nasty experience. The memory will continue to haunt me if I come back,” the student said. Meanwhile, as activities in the institution came to a standstill, some parents thronged the school to withdraw their children. Some students, who live outside Damaturu, said they had no money to travel home. Some of the teachers, who were still in deep shock and mourning their slain colleagues and students, said they had yet to recover from the experience and were not in the mood to comment on the incident. Residents of Damaturu had appealed to the Federal Government to restore communication services in the states under emergency rule to enable them to provide security operatives with useful information. “This unfortunate incident at the secondary school could have been averted or checked if there was telephone service. “The security operatives would have been alerted on phone when residents noticed suspicious movements of the attackers,” a resident said.
Posted on: Wed, 19 Jun 2013 05:58:12 +0000
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