Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram launched a surprise attack Wednesday night on villages in the north-eastern part of Borno state that has left at least 150 people dead.
The deadliest attack was on the village of Kakawa where the Islamists killed 97 people including women and children.
“The terrorists first descended on Muslim worshippers in various mosques who were observing the Maghrib prayer shortly after breaking their fast,” eyewitness Babami Alhaji Kolo said to AFP news agency. “They… opened fire on the worshippers who were mostly men and young children. They spared nobody. In fact, while some of the terrorists waited and set most of the corpses on fire, others proceeded to houses and shot indiscriminately at women who were preparing food.”
The attacks on Wednesday followed Tuesday assaults on two towns where 48 men were shot after finishing prayers.
The two villages attacked are on the outskirts of the town of Monguno which the military recently recaptured from the terrorists.
“They were praying in the mosque when Boko Haram attackers descended on the village. They waited till they finished the prayers. They gathered them in one place, separated men from women and opened fire on them,” a Monguno resident told the BBC. “Many died, some escaped. They then set the village on fire. I saw five victims with bullet wounds who managed to escape. They were brought to [Monguno] on wheelbarrows, before they were transferred to vehicles that took them to hospitals.”