Nigerian Army probes how 83 soldiers disappeared after Boko Haram attack

The Nigerian Army has opened an inquiry into the
circumstances surrounding the disappearance of
scores of soldiers after a Boko Haram attack last
Monday, PREMIUM TIMES can report.
The Army has also replaced the commanding officer
who was amongst the 83 soldiers that went missing
in the attack.
Top level military officials familiar with the
development told PREMIUM TIMES that the enquiry
was instituted by the Nigerian Army 8th Task Force
Division in Monguno, Borno State.
Members of the enquiry panel are still being
identified by our sources, but they were drawn from
the Nigerian Army 8th Division Provost Group also
in Monguno.
The development came as military authorities
continued to withhold information from the public,
on the disappearance of a large number of soldiers.
The reports, published exclusively by this
newspaper, detailed how soldiers attached to the 145
Task Force Battalion came under attack while
manning a station in Gashigar, Borno State, near the
border with the Republic of Niger.
The assault, which started around 5:00 p.m. on
October 17, left yet unknown number of Nigerian
soldiers dead. Some soldiers drowned in the Yobe
River, while several others missing.
PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the soldiers abandoned
their post due to the superior fire power of the
terrorists, who also came in large numbers.
By the next morning, it became clear that about 83
soldiers, including a commanding officer, were
missing. At least 22 others were rescued by their
Nigerien counterparts.
The rescued ones were dispatched to a hospital in
Diffa, southern Niger.
Despite relentless demands for information about
the incident, the military has yet to provide details
to Nigerians.
Similarly, family members of soldiers stationed at
the location of the attack are getting increasingly
agitated because they haven’t been able to contact
their loved ones.
PREMIUM TIMES learnt that telecom signals in the
area have been put off, making it difficult for family
members to confirm whether their loved ones were
amongst those missing.
“There is tension and apprehension in the
battalion,” one of our sources said. “There is no
phone network service in the location. Hence, most
of the families do not know who is missing or not.”
PREMIUM TIMES also gathered the Army has asked
Long John, a captain, to start acting as the
commanding officer because he’s the next most
senior officer to K. Yusuf, a colonel, who went
missing.
The military has also intensified rescue efforts for
the missing soldiers.
The Multinational Joint Task Force and troops
attached to 8th Task Force Division have been on
patrol for about a week now, as part of the rescue
effort.
Army spokesman, Sani Usman, confirmed to
PREMIUM TIMES on Tuesday night that rescue efforts
were underway. But said he won’t disclose the
number of missing soldiers.