MOSCOW, November 23 (Sputnik) — Boko Haram militants killed approximately 50 fish merchants in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno State on Thursday, AFP reports, citing the head of the fish traders association.
“Scores of Boko Haram fighters blocked a route linking Nigeria with Chad near the fishing village of Doron Baga on the shores of Lake Chad on Thursday and killed a group of 48 fish traders on their way to Chad to buy fish,” Abubakar Gamandi stated.
Some people had their throats cut; others were tied and thrown into the lake to drown. “The attackers killed their victims silently without the use of the gun to avoid attracting attention from the multi-national troops,” Gamandi stated, referring to the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF), comprising troops from Nigeria, Chad and Niger. Formed in 1998, the MNJTF is tasked with fighting transnational crime, but its mandate has been expanded to combat Boko Haram militants in the restive region.
“We heard of the attack near Doron Baga but we don’t have any details because the area falls under the operational jurisdiction of the MNJTF,” said an unanimous military officer in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, as quoted by AFP.
The remote fishing community of Baga is located approximately 200 kilometers (124 miles) away from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State. It has been the scene of countless attacks by Boko Haram, a radical group trying to establish an Islamic state.
The most recent attack in Borno State reportedly took place on November 19. Boko Haram militants have killed at least 45 people in the village of Azaya Kura, the International Business Times UK reported, citing local officials.
