Update on Boko Haram Attack on Barrack: 350 Killed in 12hours

When will this madness come to an
end? As much as 350 people were sent
to their early grave on Friday in an
invasion by the dreaded Boko Haram
sect that shook the city of Maiduguri to
its foundation. As the orgy of bloodbath
in parts of the North East continue with
clashes between Boko Haram
insurgents and the Special Forces in
Borno State, many innocent Nigerians
were caught in the cross fire.
The insurgents had attacked the 21
Armoured Brigade of the Nigerian Army
in the wee hours of Friday and in about
12 hours, over 350 persons were killed,
including the insurgents who attacked
the military formation and their
members who were held at the
detention facility on the premises of the
Brigade headquarters.
Also, the weapon stationed at the
Brigade entrance to bomb trespassers
failed to work. But why? Is there the
possibility of sabotage from the inside?
How come a critical weapon just failed
at the last minute?
A security source said: "You
know that when these people
came, the Shilka [tank] gun simply
did not fire . It disappointed, so
the soldiers had to rely on other
weapons to defend the barracks.
The gun was positioned to defend
that part of the barracks where
the insurgents came from. If that
gun had fired, they wouldn't have
got into the barracks near the
detention facility."
It was gathered that the insurgents
targeted the detention facility within
the 21 Armoury Brigade where most of
the hardened members of the sect
were detained.
The military authorities were said to
have received an intelligence report of
an impending attack on the barracks
and prepared for the insurgents. The
insurgents attempted to divert the
attention of the military by carrying out
the attack in military uniforms and
vehicles painted in military colours.
The insurgents' advancement could not
be halted because the Shilka tank, a
multipurpose self-propelled anti-aircraft
artillery weapon positioned to secure
the barracks failed to work, to the
surprise of the soldiers.
The military is already looking into the
reason behind the disappointment of
the critical weapon of war.
A security source told Punch that the
Boko Haram members fought their way
into the detention facility and they tried
to free some of their members being
held.
Boko Haram men burnt the MRS (the
traditional medical facility in the
barracks) and the detention facility.
The soldiers are now fully alert and they
are on the look out for the insurgents.