Jutha Gupah, Maiduguri June 10, 2020.
Governor Babagana Zulum of Borno state; has said that 81 people were killed with injuring of 13 others at Faduma Kolomdi village on Tuesday. The nomadic village; is 120 kilometres north of Maiduguri, the state capital. The insurgents after the killings abducted the village head and six others with the rustling of 400 cows. Zulum disclosed this Wednesday, when he visited Faduma Kolomdi in Gubio Local Government Area to condole community over the loss of over six dozen people. A survivor told Zulum that 81 residents were killed during the attack on Tuesday with 13 persons injured and seven others, including village head abducted. While sympathising with the people, Zulum urged the Nigerian military to undertake a final onslaught that should put an end to insurgents on shores of the lake Chad. He described the attack as babaric and unfortunate. He also evacuated five injured persons in his convoy, for treatment at an undisclosed hospital. Speaking on recent attacks, he said: “Last year, about same number of people were killed in Gajiram like it happened again. “This is barbaric. It is very unfortunate. “The only solution to end this massacre is by dislodging the insurgents in the shores of Lake Chad. Doing so will require collaborative regional efforts.” A resident of Faduma Kolomdi (name withheld), who was the only one that the attack, told The Guardian during Governor’s visit that; “The Boko Haram insurgents in gun trucks and armored tanks came around 10am yesterday (Tuesday).
“They operated for about six hours and left around 4pm. “The insurgents gathered us and said they wanted to deliver religious sermon to us.” Continued; “They asked us to submit whatever arm we had. Some villagers gave up their dane guns, bow and arrows.” He said the insurgents pretended as if they were not there for any violence. According to him, suddenly, the insurgents however; started shooting at will into various directions. “Even children and women were not spared,” he said, adding that many were shot at close range; while many villagers started running into the bush and farmlands. He said at the end of multiple sporadic shootings, many villagers that were killed were buried from 10pm Tuesday and 6am Wednesday. While lamenting on death tolls and abduction, he said: “We have buried 49 corpses here while another 32 corpses were taken away by families from the villages around us. “The insurgents abducted seven persons including our village head. They went away with 400 cows.” Contrary to the modus operandi of Boko Haram, its members did not set the village head’s palace.
A resident from a adjourning village also corroborated what Zulum was told by the Boko Haram victims There were also fears amongst residents of other villages, that the death toll may be more than 81, since tracing of fallen victims are still ongoing.
