Scores of Boko Haram insurgents were reportedly killed early Wednesday morning as Nigerian soldiers foiled an attack on a military facility in Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State.

Local sources said over 500 insurgents attacked the naval base at the Lake Chad Fish Dam from about 2 a.m. until daytime, initially overpowering naval personnel at the base.

However, reinforcements from Baga, a town in the local government areas, subdued the insurgents with land bombardments and airstrikes.

The local sources could not specify the number of insurgents killed but said they had been seen evacuating the bodies of their dead comrades in batches using local boats.

“Over 500 of them came. It was an ambitious attack, likely to take over the base. But, God so kind, they were not allowed. Later, we saw some of them packing the bodies in local boats,” the source, who didn’t want to be mentioned, said.

However, he explained that some soldiers died in the attack.

“Soldiers were also killed. Their dead were evacuated with an ambulance vehicle,” the source explained.

According to the sources, the insurgents came from Ahuja, Musarram, and Tudun Danmairi–all villages in the local government area.

They had recently intensified attacks in the area, seizing boats and farm produce.

A few days ago, the insurgents robbed residents of 10 boats in Doron Baga, a border town with the Republic of Chad.

The locals travel by boats to the neighboring countries. For some time, however, due to the insurgency, the route has been abandoned.

According to the locals, the Borno State Government said it would reopen the routes, but the insurgents do not want it to happen.

“Boko Haram does not want the government to open the roads, but it is a good initiative. We have been praying for such to happen,” a source said.

Nigerian Army confirms attack

The Nigerian Army, while confirming the early morning attack, said the insurgents targeted newly acquired swamp buggies provided by the state government for clearing waterways in the Lake Chad region.

According to the statement posted on the official Facebook page of the Nigerian Army, the terrorists were forced to retreat without gaining access to the swamp buggies.

The statement said dozens of insurgents were killed in the exchange, and materials believed to be for improvised explosive devices (IEDs) were recovered at the scene.Close

While the assault was repelled, the military reported a minimal incursion that led to the destruction of an ambulance and two other vehicles.

Several personnel were wounded in action, though no fatalities had been confirmed as of the time of reporting.

The Nigerian Air Force has since launched follow-up operations to pursue fleeing terrorists along the waterways.

Read the Full Statement Below:

SCORES OF BOKO HARAM/ISWAP TERROISTS NEUTRALISED IN ATTEMPTED INFILTRATION INTO NAVAL BASE LAKE CHAD FISH DAM

In a well-coordinated joint land, maritime and air operations troops of Operation Hadin Kai neutralized scores of Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists that attempted to infiltrate the Naval Base Lake Chad in Fish Dam during the early hours of today.

The terrorists commenced their infiltration attack at about 2 AM to destroy the newly acquired Swamp Boggeys by the Borno State Government for waterways clearance in the Lake Chad but was fiercely resisted by personnel of the Naval Base Lake Chad with reinforcement from Baga in a firefight that lasted for over two hours before the terrorists retreated having failed to gain access to the Swamp Boggeys while scores were neutralized and IED materials recovered.

Minimal incursion was made leading to the destruction of an ambulance and two other vehicles while some personnel were wounded in action. The air component platforms are currently conducting follow on pursuit exploitation on the water ways to further decimate the terrorists.

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