AGAIN, BOKO HARAM ATTACKS DAMBOA, HOISTS FLAG

Boko Haram on Friday attacked Damboa town in Southern Borno, killing scores of people and hoisted the sect's flags in parts of the strategic town yesterday morning, fleeing residents have said.The deadly attack on the town, which is just 85 kilometres from Maiduguri, according to eyewitness accounts, left them with no other choice but to take flight.
“We have to massively flee the town so as not to be caught in the crossfire for we are anticipating the army to try to reclaim the town from the terrorists," some of the residents said.
The sect had earlier displaced the Nigeria Army from their barracks in the town, which had been under continuous siege for two weeks now.
With the hoisting of their black and white flag, and the insurgents’ presence in the town - located on the Biu/Maiduguri road - one of the major highways to Maiduguri is now impassable.
This leaves the capital of the troubled Borno State, Maiduguri, with only one exit and entry point - the Damaturu/Maiduguri road. With the latest development, there are also fears that there might be humanitarian crisis in Maiduguri, which already had over 15,000 internally displaced persons housed at different facilities.
The extent of casualties recorded in the attack could not be confirmed but sources said the local vigilante who were the only security available were overpowered by the terrorists.
The Associated Press puts the death toll at more than 100 people.
Hundreds of villagers in another town, Askira Uba, were fleeing after receiving letters from Boko Haram threatening to attack and take over their areas, spokesman Abbas Gava of the Nigerian Vigilante Group said.
"Nine major villages are on the run," he said.
Survivors said yesterday that insurgents fired rocket-propelled grenades and lobbed homemade bombs into homes, and then gunned down people as they tried to escape the fires in the attack on Damboa town launched before dawn two days ago. Most of the town has burned down, they said.
A human rights advocate said the extremists struck again as people were trying to bury the dead later on Friday, and said the death toll is probably much higher than 100. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to reporters. The only defence came from vigilantes armed with clubs and homemade rifles, Gava said.
The town had been under siege for two weeks since Boko Haram dislodged soldiers from a new tank battalion camp on its outskirts. The Defence Ministry had claimed to have repelled the attack and killed at least 50 insurgents for the loss of six soldiers including the commanding officer. But locals said many soldiers were killed and the military was driven from the base.

When contacted last night, spokesman of the 7 Div, Maduguri, Col. Mohammed Dole said he was not aware that Boko Haram had hoisted their flags in Damboa.
Source: Thisday