By Rafiu Ajakaye
LAGOS
Boko Haram militants have again attacked several communities in Chibok, a city of the northeastern Borno State, killing many people and setting ablaze several houses, local community leaders said Friday.
"There were attacks on the Chibok communities of Gatamwarwa and Thlilaimakalama yesterday and many were killed. Multinational troops should save Chibok from decimation," Tsambido Hosea Abana, a Chibok community leader, told The Anadolu Agency.
Abana's account was corroborated by Lawan Rabana, a spokesman for a local Chibok community, who said that attacks have continued in the areas despite military operations that recently left several militants dead.
"We heard of the attack on Gatamwarwa and Thlilaimakalama in which many people were killed. These attacks took place on Thursday," according to Rabana.
But Rabana hailed the military for taking the "battle to the terrorists unlike the previous practice of always defending after the militants have launched attacks."
This attack took place on the same day when at least 30 persons were killed in neighboring Adamawa state during an attack by Boko Haram militants.
Nigeria appeared to have changed its defensive tactics against the Boko Haram militants, with reports of air raids and troops taking the battle to the Boko Haram hideouts across the restive northeastern area.
On Thursday, the military said several militants were killed while many others are running for cover as army bombed their location in Sambisa forest, their major hideout in Adamawa State.
A day earlier, defense spokesman said more than 300 militants had been killed when troops stormed Monguno and other areas they had earlier occupied. At least 11 northeastern towns were liberated following the raids, the army said.
Since 2009, Nigeria has battled a fierce Boko Haram insurgency that has ravaged the country's volatile northeast and left thousands dead.
A seemingly emboldened Boko Haram recently stepped up its militant activity, seizing several areas of Nigeria's Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states, where it has declared a self-styled "Islamic caliphate."
