Maiduguri (Nigeria): It has been reported that some suspected Boko Haram revolutionists have forced hundreds of Nigerian soldiers to flee Marte, a border town along the shores of Lake Chad. A local community leader Imamu Habeeb said that the terrorists, numbering over 2,000, were appeared from various directions and attacked the soldiers in Kirenowa town and adjoining communities in Marte. There were encounters over the night while the continued fight forced hundreds of soldiers to flee. from Borno state capital Maiduguri. According to a local fighter Shehu Dan Baiwa they were nearly 2,000 fighters and had been armed with bombs and tanks. He added that they were used the weapons without any control and succeeded in killing several people mercilessly. This is the third time that the Boko Haram has seized control of Marte in the restive Borno state which was a key battleground during the time-frame of six-year insurgency. As per analysis, more than 13,000 people were killed and left 1.5 million homeless during various violent occasions. The Marte city is one among the several retaken in recent weeks by Nigeria’s military, which has launched an offensive against the terrorist Islamists as part of a regional operation supported by Chad, Cameroon and Niger. As Boko Haram have been fighting back, the Nigerian troops were also forced to withdraw from the stronghold of Boko Haram’s Sambisa Forest, after a land-mine blast which killed one soldier and three vigilantes. A senior local politician has confirmed, that the insurgents had retaken Marte. He added that the people fled to Chad and Cameroon were returned back after the Nigerian troops recovered the town recently. A senior military official confirmed the attack on Marte while refused to say regarding the recapturing of the city by Boko Haram insurgents.
had retaken the town, He has described the army’s retreat as “strategic”. Video on Boko Haram’s retake of NE town in Nigeria
