Boko Haram kills 18 women in ‘food hunt at a funeral’

Weeks after the Nigerian army declared victory over Boko Haram, the sect strikes again, killing 18 women at a funeral in Adamawa.

The sect went on raiding villages on the borders of Sambisa forest in search for food, officials confirm.

Speaking to TheCable on Friday, Haman Furo, executive secretary of the Adamawa State Emergency Management Agency (ADSEMA), said the attack was 40-day mourning gathering for the dead.

He added that the victims took the risk of returning to their villages, on the fringes of Sambisa forest, following apparent peace in the village, after military action.

“The People just took the risk of returning on their own, it was a spontaneous return. I don’t think the security eyes were on that village,” he said.

“They (Boko Haram) came out raiding for food. Just at the fringe, border, so they raided yesterday in the evening around 7 or so.

“The military would now move into the village, it’s almost at the extreme end of Sambisa forest. The military has gone in to ascertain the level of destruction. Whenever they are through, they let us know.

“It happened when the villagers gathered for a mourning ceremony. They were just mourning; a forty-day prayer. And most of the people affected were women,” he added with no clear figure on number of women killed.

A resident, who spoke to Reuters,  said about 18 bodies were counted three hours after the attack.

President Muhammadu Buhari and the Nigerian army, have said time and again, that the sect has been defeated, and have no capacity to seize territories.

Lai Mohammed, minister of information and culture, has also said repeatedly that the insurgents are demoralised, sick and hungry.

“The insurgents have been effectively denied territory or sanctuary and are now in disarray. Scattered, demoralized and hungry, they have resorted to terror tactics available to a degraded and defeated insurgent group,” he had said.

The search for food corroborates Mohammed’s narratives, but there are fears that this may be one of the many attacks the sect is said to commence during Ramadan, the holy month for Islamic fast.