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Troops of the Joint Task Force (North East) Operation HADIN KAI (OPHK) have repelled simultaneous assaults by Islamist militants on two military bases in Borno state, leaving an unspecified number of soldiers dead, the army said on Monday.
The weekend’s coordinated assaults targeted Pulka, near the Cameroon border, and Mandaragirau in southern Borno, both long-contested fronts in the fight against Islamist militants.
The military said the failed attacks highlight mounting pressure on the insurgents.
President Donald Trump ordered airstrikes on Islamist militant targets in Nigeria’s northwest in December and said there could be more U.S. military action there.
Military spokesperson Sani Uba said ISWAP launched a multi-pronged assault using gun trucks and motorcycles in Mandaragirau, but soldiers, who had anticipated the strike, met them with heavy fire and prevented any breach.
Some soldiers and Civilian Joint Task Force members were killed in action, and several wounded personnel were airlifted out for treatment, Uba said, without providing further details.
In the second attack, Boko Haram and ISWAP fighters pushed into a troops’ position in Pulka late Saturday, briefly breaching the perimeter and destroying accommodation and some equipment.
In a related development, troops of Sector 2 at Mandaragirau came under a coordinated multi-pronged attack by ISWAP terrorists mounted on gun trucks and motorcycles.
Anticipating such action, troops had tactically emplaced combat teams that decisively engaged the terrorists.
Interestingly, the attack was successfully thwarted after a fierce exchange without any breach to the defence of the location. Regrettably, some gallant personnel and Civilian Joint Task Force members paid the supreme price in the defence of their location, while few soldiers sustained injuries and were immediately evacuated by Air Component of OPHK and the Nigerian Army Aviation platforms.
Their sacrifice embodies the highest traditions of service, courage, and commitment to the defence of Nigeria.
Troops held their ground and, with reinforcements, drove the militants back, Uba said.
Follow-up exploitation along the Kimba axis revealed blood trails,shallow graves and abandoned items, while eyewitness accounts confirmed the evacuation of multiple terrorist casualties towards Kimba, further underscoring the scale of enemy losses, Uba said.
