BOKO HARAM: Insurgents raid Cameroon kill 3, abduct 12

Boko Haram, Monday, killed at least three people and kidnapped 15 others in a fresh cross-border attack in northern Cameroun.
“The attack took place on Monday afternoon when at least 20 armed men tried to get food supplies, stealing all the food stocks found in the Camerounian village of Greya,” a security source told Anadolu Agency yesterday. The source added, “Boko Haram militants killed at least three civilians and abducted a dozen others – presumably all Camerounians. “Before leaving, the terrorists also burned down the village’s primary school.” Due to the area’s poor communication infrastructure, the Camerounian army was warned too late of the incident, finally arriving “long after the attackers had left,” the source stated. According to the AFP, the militant group has already been blamed for several previous cross-border attacks from Nigeria. In a related development, the news agency reported that at least 11 Camerounian boys kidnapped in July by the Islamist militants had escaped. The boys, aged between seven and 15 years old, had been kidnapped by the militant group during a cross-border attack on Cameroun’s northern town.

“The boys say they were detained near Madagali, a town in Adamawa State, Nigeria. After taking them from Cameroun, Boko Haram had enrolled them at a Quranic school,” the source told Anadolu on condition of anonymity. “Days later, the school was attacked by unknown persons and they took advantage of the confusion to escape,” he added. On their way back home, the boys reached Vizik, a Nigerian town on the border with Cameroon, from where they managed to secure a lift across the border, according to the same source. The 11 boys have since been handed over to the Camerounian security services, which are still holding them for questioning. “The story of their escape is not consistent; their journey from Nigeria to Cameroun is not clear,” the source said. He went on to voice fears that they had not actually escaped but rather had been “enlisted” by Boko Haram to carry out attacks in Cameroun. “They have provided no clear location of their place of detention in Nigeria. They gave no clue to the fate of others abducted in the same attack, including the wife of Deputy Prime Minister Amadou Ali or even Kolofata Mayor Seiny Boukar Lamine,” he added.