Nigerian Senator Says Boko Haram Took Over Bama, Killed Two Of His Nephews
A Nigerian Senator, Khalifa Zanna, said that Islamist terrorist group, Boko Haram, today overran Bama, his hometown and local government area. displaced persons from Bama occupies a high school in Maiduguri Sahara Reporters Media
Senator Zanna told SaharaReporters today that the sect overwhelmed Nigerian troops, took over Bama and had been driving around in armored tanks and military pickup in the second largest town in Borno State.
The senator stated that the insurgents killed two of his nephews named Babagana Mala Zanna, 28, and Yusuf Mala Zanna, 20, after finding them in his brother’s house in Bama early this morning.
Mr. Zanna’s assertion tallies with the reports from fleeing residents who told SaharaReporters that Bama fell to the militants last night.
The Nigerian military has not given further updates apart from a tweet last night that it was “repelling the
terrorists”. Senator Zanna also said there were significant civilian deaths from the fierce firefight that lasted five hours between Nigerian troops and Boko Haram militants.
The army initially repelled the militants, reportedly killing more than 50 of them. But a security source disclosed that the militants came back with greater force, forcing the soldiers to flee along with civilians to Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.
A Nigerian Air Force jet arrived the scene and bombed Bama twice. The first bomb was dropped on the barracks at Bama, a military source told SaharaReporters. He said the jet dropped the bomb to prevent the sect from laying hands on the armory in Bama. The second bomb also destroyed an army tank seized by Boko Haram militants, said the soldier.
