Gunmen believed to be members of the dreaded Islamic fundamentalist group, Boko Haram, on Friday evaded the tight security network mounted by the Joint Task Force (JTF) in Maiduguri, killing five people including a policeman on the outskirts of the city.
JTF spokesman, Lt. Col. Sagir Usman confirmed the attack, saying five persons were killed by the unidentified gunmen in Musari in the early hours of Friday before security men arrived at the scene.
“The JTF response team that went to the area between 1 and3 a.m. arrested three of the gunmen and recovered weapons,” he said.
Earlier, on Christmas Eve, men suspected to be members of the sect had attacked some churches, killing about 12 people.
Police authorities said that in one of the assaults at a Pentecostal church in Postikum, Yobe State, the unidentified gunmen attacked and killed six worshipers, including the pastor, during the prayer session and also set the building ablaze before fleeing into the night.
Another group of Christian worshippers at the First Baptist Church in Maiduguri in Borno State were also attacked, resulting in the death of five church members.
These attacks are reminiscent of series of killings around the same period last year, when survivors of bomb attacks were holding remembrance services for the departed.
Several times, the Islamist sect has claimed responsibility for the wave of deadly attacks on churches in the region during Christmas and at other times.
Reacting to the latest attacks, President Goodluck Jonathan promised that in the days to come, a comprehensive review and reassessment of the security situation will be carried out.
“Sometimes, challenges make people doubt the sincerity of government but I am confident that God knows everything,” Jonathan said Sunday.
Residents of the violence-prone areas are, however, not convinced of the said government sincerity, as they told media men that despite the regular assurances of security, they have been attacked again.
Same unidentified gunmen, in the early hours of yesterday, attacked the Adamawa State border of Maiha, shooting at policemen, and setting ablaze the police station, court building and the government lodge.
Spokesman of the Adamawa State Police Command, DSP Muhammad Ibrahim confirmed the attack, but said the command headquarters has not received a detailed briefing of the attack.
However, residents said that about 40 gunmen with sophisticated weapons, some ridding in Hilux vehicles and others on foot, carried out the attacks, chanting Allahu Akbar (God is Greatest) on the border posts with neighbouring Cameroon.
