Boko Haram kills 8, blows up bridge in Yobe

Boko Haram  insurgents have attacked a remote community in Yobe State, killing no fewer than eight people.

The insurgents also blew up a bridge linking the communities with other North East states of Adamawa, Borno and Gombe, residents said.

The gunmen attacked Kartako in Gujba Local Government Area  of Yobe State, about 25 kilometres from Damaturu, the state capital, on Monday night. “They came to the town at about 7.30p.m. shooting sporadically,” a police source said.


Residents said the insurgents first ambushed some military troops at their base in the town before they started shooting into people’s houses. They said the shooting and throwing of improvised explosives into houses  forced people out and the insurgents opened fire on them.

“They came here and launched an unsuccessful attack on the military base before embarking on some selective killings within town, living us with eight casualties presently being prepared for burial,” a fleeing resident told journalists in Damaturu.

Sources said the insurgents proceeded to the main road, where they blew up the Kartako Bridge linking the area with other North East states.

The Monday attack, according to residents, was the first in the remote community since 2011, when Boko Haram launched the first attack in the state.