Col. Elemele, Capt. Mohammed, four soldiers killed in Boko Haram ambush

Boko Haram terror group has killed six military operatives including a colonel, a captain and four soldiers in an ambush along Maiduguri-Damaturu highway.

The victims, according to a source, belonged to the 29 Task Force Brigade Headquarters in Benisheik. The source noted that the ambush was staged by members of the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP).

It was gathered that the soldiers were moving in a gun truck between Mainok and Jakana, 30km away from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital when they ran into the insurgents around 5:25pm on Wednesday.

“The terrorists opened fire at our patrol vehicle killing all but one soldier on board,” a security source said Thursday.

“The six dead bodies had been recovered from the scene of the incident. The gun truck was completely destroyed by the attackers.

“The six dead bodies have been recognized as our own. The bodies included Chief of Staff at the 29 Taskforce Brigade, Colonel K. E. Elemele and that of Captain A. Mohammed as well as bodies of four other soldiers,” he said.

It was further gathered that late Elemele was on his way to Abuja for a course when the unfortunate incident happened.

There hasn’t been any official statement by the military authorities on the ambush yet.

In a similar development, Boko Haram fighters on Wednesday ambushed some international Non-governmental Organisation staffers at Kennari village along Damasak road in northern part of Borno State, killing one and abducting other workers.