Fighters of the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP), on Tuesday, overran a military base in the southern part of Borno State, carting away weapons.
According to Daily Trust, this development came after a fierce gun battle with the troops.
The publication adds that the fighters rode on about 10 utility vehicles to storm the military formation at Kwamdi village, Damboa local government area, on Tuesday evening.
Among other items burnt were one Ammour Personal Carrier(APC) and a gun truck.
A member of the Civilian Joint Task Force (JTF), Hamidu Abu, who spoke to the publication, said the ISWAP fighters targeted soldiers camp but not residents, adding that while the base was being razed, arms and ammunition were stolen by the invaders.
“They came at about 4 p.m. and due to the sand storms it was difficult for soldiers to repel them. They burnt down the base including APC and four other vehicles.
“I can’t ascertain if there was any causality figure,” Abu said.
A security source confirmed that the base came under attack from gunmen believed to be ISWAP fighters at about 4 pm and it lasted for about an hour and 30 minutes.
The source added that fighters seized the opportunity of the sand storm to penetrate the base.
“Our base at Kwamdi came under attack but we didn’t lose any of our personnel to the attackers, unfortunately, the base suffered some damages,” the security source reportedly told Daily Trust.
As of the time of filing this report, the Nigerian military is yet to confirm the development.
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