Attack of Metele: more than 100 soldiers died and many are missing – Nigerian soldiers


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Troops fighting on the front lines of the Boko Haram conflict in northeastern Nigeria have released a video claiming that at least 100 soldiers would have died in a recent attack and deploring the poor state of their equipment.

Metele Boko Haram Attack

In the five-minute video seen by AFP on Saturday, a soldier recounting in the background shows the shells burned from several tanks and vehicles at the Metele base, attacked on Nov. 18 by the province of West Africa. West, an Islamic state affiliated with the IS.

The video below that is online is not the latest Metele attack, it is Zari's attack on August 30, 2018.

At least 43 soldiers were killed in the attack according to military and civilian sources, although the army disputes the death toll.

The video was revealed Saturday by the fact that a dozen girls were abducted by suspected members of Boko Haram in border villages in southeastern Niger.

He underlined the growing desperation among the troops who, in June, protested against their redeployment to the remote Lake Chad region after fighting Boko Haram jihadists for years without assistance.

"No less than 100 soldiers and more have died here. Many are missing in action, they are not found, "said the soldier in the video, obtained by AFP from a military source who has confirmed its authenticity.

"See the weapons that they bring here. These do not work, "he said, revealing the charred remains of tanks and other military equipment.

"They are obsolete vehicles, they do not work. They just keep them for formalities, "said the soldier.

"Imagine, they kill us every day," he said. "The situation is getting worse."

The video shows the vast camp in the middle of the desert, 260 km from Maiduguri, capital of Borno State.

The army did not respond immediately to the publication of the video.

More than 27,000 people were reportedly killed during the nine-year Islamist insurgency that triggered a humanitarian crisis and left 1.8 million people homeless. Http://www.vanguardngr.com/2018/11/boko-haram-group criticizes the Senate for adjourning plenaries on alleged assassinated soldiers /

– Deep shock & # 39; –

The video, the first public overview of the base since its attack, shows stacks of blackened zinc leaves that were the place of residence of the troops.

Personal belongings and pots were scattered on the floor as the soldiers moved around the debris under a bright blue sky.

ISWAP announced Monday that it had killed "more than 40 Nigerian soldiers" in Metele and carried "four tanks" with other vehicles and ammunition.

On Friday, the jihadist group claimed that its fighters had killed 118 Nigerian soldiers in five attacks on military bases in north-east last week.

The Nigerian army broke the silence late Friday night to confirm that the Metele base had been attacked.

In a statement, he said that, although "true", there was an attack, he noted that "several publications on social media, print and online publications carried false statistics on victims. "

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said Saturday in a statement that he was "shocked" by Metele's attack.

"We are ready to give them all the necessary support in terms of equipment and manpower to successfully put an end to the renewed threat," said Buhari.

"In the coming days, I will engage the army and intelligence leaders in in-depth discussions about the next steps we will take."

AFP has reported at least 17 attempts to overtake army bases since July.

"Boko Haram is not technically defeated"

Many have been claimed by the Islamic State of West Africa (ISWAP).

The attacks were seen as a sign of a radical takeover in the faction by more radical commanders and put the army to the test at a time when soldiers complain of fatigue.

Security analysts said new attacks are expected by February 16, when Nigerians go to the polls to elect a new president and parliament.

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