ICC Note: According to the Associated Press, the Nigerian Army and local civilian vigilantes joined forces to defeat 150 Boko Haram Islamists. While defeating a large number of extremists, the army was able to rescue 36 women and children from Boko Haram’s clutches. The mission continues a concerted effort by Nigeria and regional nations to defeat the Islamic group by December. Both the Army and civilians participated in the assault based on intelligence which reported Boko Haram was planning a major assault, but would not include any more information. As the terrorist organization begins to be repelled toward the borders, they have increased their suicide attacks on Christian communities while also targeting Muslim areas; predominately mosques. Lately they have been using young girls as suicide bombers due to their ability to sneak in and out of areas with little risk of raising an alarm.
10/22/2015 Nigeria (Time) – Soldiers and civilians in Nigeria’s restive northeast joined forces to kill 150 Islamist militants and rescue 36 female and child prisoners on Tuesday night, the Associated Press reported.
The assault is a rare victory against Boko Haram, the Islamist terrorist group that over the past six years has claimed over 20,000 lives in Nigeria and neighboring countries. The Nigerian military has pledged to subdue the extremists, assembling with Niger, Chad, and Cameroon a transnational task force of nearly 9,000 soldiers to fight them.
Civilians who participated in Tuesday night’s assault said they acted on intelligence that Boko Haram was planning a major attack, but failed to disclose additional details. One fighter told the Associated Press that they successfully raided the group’s arsenal of guns and explosives.
Another military offensive on Wednesday against a Boko Haram base in Nganzai district — about 100 miles north of Tuesday night’s assault and 43 north of the state capital of Maiduguri — was a pyrrhic victory. A group of militants fleeing the assault opened fire on four vehicles as they escaped, killing the 20 people in those cars before setting the cars ablaze. They then looted and burned a nearby village.
