Boko Haram continues its campaign of terror in Nigeria’s northeast, with the latest being a revenge attack where seven people were beheaded on Monday, according to residents.
When people of Ngamdu, the town targeted by the overnight raid woke up, they discovered “seven people had been brutally killed”, said resident Musa Abor.
According to him, the gunmen “slit their (victims) throats just the way people slaughter goats”.
A Borno state official, who craved anonymity also said that the bodies of the seven victims had been decapitated.
Boko Haram insurgents have in recent months focused on carrying out reprisal attacks against locals who have fought alongside the military as vigilantes as they continue unleashing terror, with over 10,000 people killed since the insurgency started in 2009.
Vanguards reports that an army officer in Borno, who also requested anonymity, said 15 Boko Haram fighters were killed in clashes in Ngamdu two weeks ago and the group had vowed revenge against the community. This was believed to be the reason for the beheading of seven people in the town.
The violence came as Muslims in Nigeria celebrate the Eid-el-Kabir festival, with the attack once coming during an Islamic holiday, speaking volumes about the non-Islamic nature of the campaign of the Boko Haram.
The military had in recent weeks recorded some success against the terror group, and has imposed a travel ban across Borno and neighbouring Yobe state to last through the Eid holiday to guard against insurgent attacks, but the terrorists found their way and killed seven people in Ngamdu.
While the military claim to be doing its best, analysts have often say the army lacked enough troops to cover the areas where the insurgents are unleashing attacks.