About 20 soldiers are dead and nearly 1000 people made homeless in a militant attack on a town in northeastern Nigeria, two residents and a military source say.
A Nigerian soldier with a grenade launcher. Photo: Florian PLAUCHEUR / AFP
The militants entered Monguno in Borno state posing as a convoy of soldiers on Tuesday evening local time, the sources said. They then attacked troops already inside the town, destroying at least 750 homes in the process.
Resident Gumati Sadu said people fled into the bush for safety during the fighting and that three civilians were killed by stray bullets.
A military spokesperson declined comment.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
A decade-long insurgency campaign by Boko Haram has killed thousands and displaced millions in northeastern Nigeria. Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), which split from Boko Haram in 2016, has since staged its own frequent attacks in the region.
Thousands in Monguno had already been displaced from their homes elsewhere in Borno state by militants. Aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) warned last year that many thousands in Monguno lacked proper shelter, water, sanitation and food.
- Reuters