The Nigerian army debunked the report about 150 people who drowned in a river or were shot dead while fleeing Boko Haram gunmen in Yobe state.
The report by AFP claimed that the news did not get out fast, because the terrorists destroyed communication powerlines.
Colonel Rabe Abubakar, the director of defence information, commented on the Yobe massacre in an interview with Channels TV’s defence correspondent, Amaka Okafor.
He said that the report by the AFP was false.
The renowned news agency reported on Tuesday, August 18, that about 150 people, mostly women and children, were killed by the Boko Haram terrorists.
An eyewitness was quoted as saying that the gunmen were escaping bombardment from the military before they moved into the remote village of Kukuwa-Gari, opening fire on the villagers.
But Colonel Abubakar said the story was fabricated and untrue.
A tweet by the Nigerian army headquarters also affirmed the colonel’s claims.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian military on Wednesday, August 19, said it killed scores of terrorists fleeing Sambisa forest, a Boko Haram’s stronghold. Army spokesperson Sani Usman said troops of 26 Task Force Brigade in Gwoza, Borno state, engaged some of these terrorists following a continued aerial bombardment by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF).
Usman said: “The fleeing terrorists in 7 pick-up vans and some motorcycles mounted with assorted weapons such as rocket propelled grenades and anti-aircraft guns were decisively dealt with, killing quite a number of them.”
The report by AFP claimed that the news did not get out fast, because the terrorists destroyed communication powerlines.
Colonel Rabe Abubakar, the director of defence information, commented on the Yobe massacre in an interview with Channels TV’s defence correspondent, Amaka Okafor.
He said that the report by the AFP was false.
The renowned news agency reported on Tuesday, August 18, that about 150 people, mostly women and children, were killed by the Boko Haram terrorists.
An eyewitness was quoted as saying that the gunmen were escaping bombardment from the military before they moved into the remote village of Kukuwa-Gari, opening fire on the villagers.
But Colonel Abubakar said the story was fabricated and untrue.
A tweet by the Nigerian army headquarters also affirmed the colonel’s claims.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian military on Wednesday, August 19, said it killed scores of terrorists fleeing Sambisa forest, a Boko Haram’s stronghold. Army spokesperson Sani Usman said troops of 26 Task Force Brigade in Gwoza, Borno state, engaged some of these terrorists following a continued aerial bombardment by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF).
Usman said: “The fleeing terrorists in 7 pick-up vans and some motorcycles mounted with assorted weapons such as rocket propelled grenades and anti-aircraft guns were decisively dealt with, killing quite a number of them.”
