Two soldiers and 39 Islamic West African Province (ISWAP) fighters were killed in a fierce battle on Sunday night in Damasak, Borno State.
Military chopper reportedly evacuated wounded soldiers from Damasak to Maiduguri on Monday morning.
Sources within the military revealed this, confirming the death of the two soldiers and 39 ISWAP terrorists.
It was gathered that 39 ISWAP fighters were neutralized by the Nigerian military and its Niger Republic counterpart who engaged the insurgents for over four hours in the battle to reclaim Damasak.
Damasak is the headquarters of Mobbar Local Government Area of Borno State in northeast Nigeria which is about 160km from Maiduguri. The state capital has been a target for control by Boko Haram and other terrorist fighters but has been in the firm hands of the Nigerian troops.
A security expert who pled anonymity said, “Yesterday’s fight was devastating, and this was the second time the Nigerian military had to withdraw from a battle for Damasak but were also quick to reclaim their position.
“We got a report that there’s a threat over the inhabitants of Damasak town as armed men suspected to be Boko Haram sects are regrouping between Songia settlement and Geidam Chuku village under Niger Republic with the intention of attacking Damasak town. But we believe in the military formations at this end which is vigorous and proactive.”
He added that when the insurgents attacked, the military made a tactical withdrawal which is an act in warfare to give the enemy the feeling of weakness in order to take them by surprise.
“This is what happened and the end result is the neutralization of any of them,” he said.
