Boko Haram Torches Houses, Kills Undisclosed Number of People in Adamawa

No fewer than 540 houses were completely destroyed in the villages of Kubi and Watu in Michika Local Government Area of Adamawa State by members of the Boko Haram sect in a fresh attack yesterday .

An eyewitness in one of the affected areas who confirmed the attacks to journalists, disclosed that the incident resulted in the wanton killing of an undisclosed number of innocent people in the two villages.

While narrating his ordeal, he said the insurgents overran the areas in the early hours of yesterday while they were still sleeping and went about burning houses with alacrity round their village

The eyewitness lamented that many of those killed were trapped in their homes, resulting in their being burnt to death.

He said even as the insurgents are in full control of Michika and Madagali Local Government Areas of the state, the absence of military personnel in the areas had completely dampened the hopes of the people that the insurgents would be wiped out soon.

Mallam Abu from Wato village told THISDAY in a telephone chat from where he was hiding at the top of the mountain that he managed to escape by whisker, adding that his village was completely destroyed by the insurgents.

"They have burnt our houses and some of our children, women and old men were trapped in the inferno. The fire is still burning more properties because there was nobody to put out the fire. I don't know why they are so angry and mercilessly killing anybody they come across this time," he said

Another source told THISDAY that: "Since the complete take-over of Michika and Madagali by the insurgents on September 7, no single soldier has been noticed in community. The only thing we hear is jet fighters that come from Yola to drop bombs and go back. Our people are in the state of complete helplessness. Government seems not to be coming to our aids as the insurgents control everything in our local government."

He said the insurgents were having a field day, killing and maiming people and their dead bodies are left at the mercies of vultures and pigs.

The said it was only Vimtim, the hometown of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Air Marshal Alex Badeh, that has been fortified by the military, giving an impression that the CDS hometown is more important than the entire Madagali and the Michika Local Government Areas.

He, however, called on the federal government to as a matter of urgency deploy military personnel to the affected areas to give the people a sense of belonging that they are Nigerians.

The people of Michika faulted the actions of the political class in the state, whom they accused of abandoning them at their trying periods.

Meanwhile, indications emerged yesterday that the 300 Boko Haram militants arrested in Cameroun had been seeking asylum in the country. This was made known by Cameroun's Defence Ministry, saying they are currently being interrogated in the country.

The spokesman of the ministry, Lt. Col. Didier Badjeck, was quoted as saying that the militants had demanded for asylum in Cameroun and had freely given up their arms.

Cameroun at the weekend announced that one of its leaders, Abakar Ali, was captured in Kousseri, a town in northern Cameroun. Seized from Ali, according to the report were five machine guns, 14 rifles, 24 rockets, 4 rocket launchers, 6 Kalashnikovs, 60 Kalashnikovs magazines, 4 automatic pistols , over 500 9mm ammunition, 469 12.7mm ammunition, 4,454 7.62 mm ammunition, 1,491 5.56 mm ammunition, 822 ammunition of 7.62 mm, six grenades, 28 rocket launcher chargers and other equipment like pincers, tweezers and knives.

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