Nigerian Army denies alleged killing of 30 soldiers in Borno

The Nigerian Army has denied media reports that 30 soldiers were killed by Boko Haram members at Zari village in Guzamala Local Government Area of Borno on Friday.

An international media house in a report published yesterday September 1st, claimed that troops deployed in Zari in Guzamala Local Government Area, were killed when Boko Haram launched a deadly attack on the village on Thursday evening. According to the report, members of the sect riding in trucks, stormed the base at Zari village, in northern Borno State late Thursday and briefly seized it after a fierce battle in which 30 soldiers were killed.

Refuting the media report, Brig.-Gen. Texas Chukwu, Director, Army Public Relations, in a phone interview, said that the alleged killing was the “figment of the imagination of the news agency”. According to Chukwu, the insurgents did not attack any military formation but rather came to loot foodstuffs and extort money from the locals. He said that the insurgents were repelled by the land troops of 82 Task Force deployed in Operation Lafiya Dole, who were closely supported by the Air Task Force.

“During the fire-fight, overwhelming volume of fire was unleashed on the insurgents from both the air and ground troops, neutralising several of them and their weapons. The Boko Haram took some of their corpses and fled while others escaped with bullet injuries, adding that normalcy and sanity was restored in the affected communities. t is very unfortunate how people will just sit in the comfort of their zones and fabricate stories that don’t exist, most especially the international media.

“Such false narratives, we have always believe are deliberate attempts to promote Boko Haram and their activities against the sovereignty of the country. That media organisation was said to have gotten their information from a security personnel and went ahead to file their report without making further inquiries. This is unethical and unprofessional to say the least,” Chukwu said

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