Boko Haram burns kids alive in Nigeria, 86 dead

Gen. Mohammed and eight other senior army officials in the March 14, 2014 execution of around 640 detainees following a Boko Haram raid on Giwa army barracks in Maiduguri, capital city of Borno state. Colonel Mustapha Ankas, a Nigerian military spokesman, told Reutersthat Boko Haram militants attacked the community of Dalori, about three miles east of Maiduguri in the state of Borno. Two nearby camps housing 25,000 people who have fled Boko Haram were also attacked. The Nigerian government has repeatedly claimed the war against Boko Haram is well in hand, and has at times even claimed the group is already “defeated”.

A civilian joint task force operative, Hassan Aliyu, said more than 100 people died, noting that the insurgents shot sporadically and people ran for safety. Many of them, including children, were locked up in their homes and burned alive.

Witnesses said they heard the screams of children burning to death as huts and homes were razed to the ground. Suicide bombers were readied to take action on groups who were caught up in the frightful chaos. Since it started losing control of territory, Boko Haram has reverted to hit-and-run attacks on villages as well as suicide bombings on places of worship or markets.

Survivor Alamin Bakura told the Associated Press that several of his family members were killed or wounded in the attack, which lasted for almost four hours.

The violence continued as three female suicide bombers blew themselves up amongst the villagers.

Boko Haram militants seeking to impose strict Islamic rule have been carrying out vicious attacks in parts of northern Nigeria for the last six years.

Other residents and an unidentified aid worker on Sunday said that about 50 people were killed in the attack.

“But the truth is that different affiliates have stronger or weaker relations with IS central, [and] the Boko Haram affiliation is relatively detached, unlike the one in Libya, which is actually directed by the IS leadership in Syria”, he said.

Saturday night’s attack is the third and the deadliest attack in a week following Friday’s attack in Adamawa which left 10 dead and Wednesday’s bomb blasts in Chibok which killed 16.