This Tuesday afternoon, Boko Haram gunmen killed at least 69 people and razed a village to the ground in northern Nigeria’s Borno state. The men attacked the village of Faduma Koloram, in the Gubio district of Borno state, starting about noon. They arrived in vehicles and on motorcycles, shooting with AK-47s, razing the village and stealing 1,200 cattle and camels.
A resident, a Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) member and a soldier each confirmed the same account. They stated that, “The men attacked because they suspected residents of sharing information on Boko Haram‘s movements with security authorities. It’s an unfortunate day for us to witness this.” According to the member of CJTF, the residents were armed, and had repelled previous attacks but this one caught them off guard. He said the following, “They took us unaware and killed our people.”
Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), have killed thousands and displaced millions in northeastern Nigeria. In recent months there has been an increase in attacks on civilians blamed on the group. The decade-long conflict has killed 36,000 people and displaced around two million from their homes in the northeast. The violence has spread to neighboring Niger, Chad and Cameroon, prompting a regional military coalition to fight the insurgents.
