Boko Haram militants fire grenades into Maiduguri, kill 7

Hours after the new Nigerian president ordered that the country’s defence seat be moved to Maiduguri, Borno State capital, until Boko Haram is subdued, the insurgents on Friday night staged yet another deadly attack in the city.

Boko Haram terrorists fired dozens of rocket propelled grenades into the city in the night, killing at least seven people and injuring nearly 20 others.

A senior security operative confirmed that the insurgents, who could not pass through the barricades of sand walls and trenches dug around Maiduguri city, decided to fire from outside.

“Most of the RPGs they pumped into the town landed on civilian residential areas”, said the security source, who did not want to be named as he was not cleared to speak to press. “We recorded about seven deaths and 17 other persons were also injured. Many houses were affected, but two were seriously destroyed.”

Sources around Dala-Alamdari and Ngomari area, where most of the RPGs landed, said the shootings started at about 12:50am when the whole city was asleep.

Residents including members of the Civilian-JTF had to remain awake till day break even though the whole shooting subsided at about 3am.

Yahaya Garba, a mechanic who lives around Ngomari area of Maiduguri told PREMIUM TIMES, “We thought the town has finally fallen to the Boko Haram terrorists due to the intensity of the thunderous shooting that went on and on. We all had to come out armed with sticks, cutlasses and other weapons to protect ourselves while the soldiers battled with them outside the trenches.”

The military has yet to issue a statement on the incident.

However, the top security source who spoke to PREMIUM TIMES earlier said, “Everything has been brought under control.”

Residents were going about their normal businesses, as the military did not impose any restriction on movements despite the development.