Maiduguri (Nigeria) (AFP) -
Suspected Boko Haram insurgents have forced hundreds of soldiers to flee
Marte, a border town along the shores of Lake Chad, a local official
and witnesses said.
"The
terrorists, numbering over 2,000, appeared from various directions on
Thursday and engaged the soldiers in Kirenowa town and adjoining
communities in Marte," said Imamu Habeeb, a local community leader.
"They
fought with soldiers over the night and the fight continued today
(Friday), forcing hundreds of soldiers to flee," he added from Borno
state capital Maiduguri.
Local
fighter Shehu Dan Baiwa said the more than 2,000 fighters had been
armed with bombs and tanks. "They used the weapons without restraint and
succeeded in killing several people," he said.
This is the third time Boko
Haram has seized control of Marte in restive Borno state, a key
battleground of their six-year insurgency, which has killed more than
13,000 and left 1.5 million homeless.
The
city is among several retaken in recent weeks by Nigeria's military,
which has launched an offensive against the Islamists as part of a
regional operation supported by Chad, Cameroon and Niger.
But
Boko Haram have been fighting back, and Nigerian troops were also
forced to retreat from Boko Haram's Sambisa Forest stronghold this week
after a landmine blast killed one soldier and three vigilantes.
A senior local politician confirmed, on condition of anonymity, that the insurgents had retaken Marte.
"We
lost many (people) because some of our people that fled to Chad and
Cameroon have return after Nigerian troops recovered the town recently,"
he added.
A senior military
official confirmed the attack on Marte, but refused to say whether Boko
Haram had retaken the town, describing the army's retreat as
"strategic".
Source:http://news.yahoo.com/boko-haram-retakes-ne-town-nigerian-army-012943746.html
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