14 died on Monday in Boko Haram Attacks

Nigerian Islamists on Monday attacked Bama, a town in Borno State killing 14 pro-government youth vigilantes and injuring nine others, a local official who attended a mass funeral for the victims has said.

Reuters reported that Sunday’s attack was one of the spates of deadly assaults by the Boko Haram Islamist sect this month that raises doubts about whether a military offensive against it since May can succeed.

Local vigilante groups run by youth volunteers have been instrumental in helping the military capture Boko Haram members, but they have also made them a target for the insurgents, drawing civilians further into the conflict.

The Chairman, Bama Local Government Area of Borno State,  Alhaji Baba Shehu Gulumba, told journalists in Bama, near Maiduguri, the Borno State capital that the insurgents disguised as soldiers and lured the youths into a trap.

“They were on guard duty when the sect members dressed in military camouflage came and told them that they were needed at a meeting nearby. When they had been lured away from their duty posts they were then attacked and killed,” he added.