A Nigerian Army Major serving as the commander of the Damasak military base in Borno State was killed on Friday after fighters of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) ambushed a military patrol.
According to security sources, the officer was leading a foot patrol of about 30 troops early Friday morning in Damasak, the headquarters of Mobbar Local Government Area, when the unit came under explosives and gunfire attack by the insurgents.
The assault caused the soldiers to disperse. While eight personnel later returned to base, 22 others—including the commanding officer—were initially unaccounted for. Conflicting reports emerged regarding the Major’s fate; one source indicated that calls to his phone were answered by an unknown person, suggesting he might have been captured. However, another security source clarified that the officer was killed during the ambush and was not taken alive.
Military authorities have yet to issue an official statement on the incident. TheCable’s inquiries to the Borno State Police Command and the Nigerian Army’s spokesperson had not been answered at the time of reporting.
This attack is the latest in a series of violent incidents involving ISWAP in the region. Last year, Brigadier General M. Uba was killed by the same terrorist group in an ambush along the Damboa Road in Borno.
Damasak, located near the border with Niger, has remained vulnerable to insurgent activity despite ongoing military operations in Nigeria’s northeast.
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