Nigerian Army Re-Take Baga, Loses Two Soldiers
Two soldiers paid the supreme price in a fierce battle with Boko Haram terrorists in Baga town of Kukawa local government area of Borno state, officials said.
A statement by the spokesman of the Army, Sani Usman, a brigadier general, said the Special Forces of the Nigerian Army displayed an uncommon gallantry by giving the insurgents a bloody nose.
Baga is a major commercial town in northern Borno which Boko Haram captured recently.
The military had repeatedly denied that Boko Haram captured Baga after dislodging soldiers of the Nigeria military, including those of the Multi National Joint Task Force.
But in the statement he issued Thursday night, the army spokesman said troops were able to reclaim the community after a heated gunbattle.
Sadly, the statement indicated that two soldiers of the special forces of the Nigerian military lost their lives in the battle, while five others suffered injuries.
Mr Usman said several Boko Haram terrorists were “dealt with” while troops continued to go after the remaining fleeing insurgents.
He did not however, give details of casualties recorded on the side of the outlawed Boko Haram group.
The statement by the army spokesperson reads:
“In the determined efforts to wipe out remnants of Boko Haram terrorists that now goes by the appellation of Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP), the gallant troops of the newly formed Nigerian Army Special Forces Command (NASFC), Operation LAFIYA DOLE, have given the terrorists that attacked troops location in Baga a bloody nose.
“The triumphant troops, particularly the highly revered 707 Special Forces Brigade which is the vanguard of the great exploit, dealt the decisive blow that neutralised several terrorists along that axis despite prior warning to them by some unpatriotic elements.