Local environmental officials, on Thursday, confirmed that one hundred and forty nine civilians were killed while over 200 houses were burnt in Benishiek town of Kaga Local Government Area, following the Tuesday attack by Boko Haram members.
Alhaji Bunu Kaigama Chairman of Kaga Local Government council had informed Governor Kashim Shettima that “14 people lost their lives within the town from the attack by Boko Haram members and that several others were killed along the road to Maiduguri and Damaturu.”
Local environmental officials, who continued to pick corpses since the attack on Tuesday from bushes and road sides said they counted 143 dead bodies so far and called the situation a “massacre.”
It was reported on Wednesday that 54 persons died in the attacked staged on Kano-Maiduguri highway and the nearby village of Benisheik where hundreds of homes were also burnt.
But officials of the state environmental protection agency who moved along the road sides of the highway to evacuate corpses of civilians shot by bullets from Boko Haram gunmen, said there were more deaths.
Governor Kashim Shettima had gone on a sympathy visit to asses the extent of damage inflicted on the town.
Addressing the people, the governor said, “please don’t leave your town inspite of the trauma from the unfortunate incident.
“Government is going to rebuild all the houses destroyed by the attackers and as soon as I leave here, I will constitute a five man committee which will be given 50 million naira to come and commence work immediately,” the governor said.