Borno state authorities have confirmed that Boko Haram fighters killed 85 people in last Saturday night’s attack at Dalori, a remote part of Maiduguri.
Commissioner for Health, Dr. Haruna Mshelia told the deputy governor and the General Officer Commanding (GOC) at the Specialist Hospital, Maiduguri, that 65 bodies were deposited at the Specialist Hospital, 10 at the University Teaching Hospital, while 10 were buried at Dalori village.
An eyewitness said he saw over 20 bodies burnt beyond recognition, but unofficial sources said more than 100 died.
A rescue worker with one of the humanitarian agencies said over 100 people were killed.
The Boko Haram fighters reportedly arrived the village in a convoy of Golf vehicles and motorcycles, carrying explosives and petro-bombs. They were said to have fled towards Alau Dam at 6 p.m.
Dalori is a farming and herding community, 12 kilometres east of Maiduguri.
The insurgents reportedly stormed the community through Yale village in a convoy of vehicles and motorcycles in the evening, into Maiduguri without passing through the military posts on the Maiduguri-Bama road.
The Media Coordinator of Operation Lafiya Dole, Col. Mustpaha Anka confirmed the attack in a statement, saying: “The insurgents came in Golf cars, motorcycles and opened fire, burnt houses. They wanted to cause confusion and penetrate the crowd with suicide bombers.
“While people were running to Gomari Kerkeri village, three female suicide bombers attempted to make their way into the crowd, but were intercepted and got blown up.”
He said during the 45-minute military “fierce repulsion”, lives were lost, while people were injured.
Anka continued: “The insurgents attempted to enter Dalori IDP camp, but they were resisted by troops, which resulted in the detonation of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) by the suicide bombers.”
The Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj.-Gen. Umaru Hassan, consoled the District Head of Dalori, Alhaji Lawal Bashir and his subjects on the attack.
He assured them that the command would end insurgency in Borno State soon.
Hailing the villagers for their resilience, he urged them to be strong and committed in the fight against terrorism.
“I praise the National and State Emergency Management Agencies (NEMA and SEMA), Red Cross and others for rescuing and resettling displaced people in camps,” he said.
