The Governor of Borno State, Babagana Zulum, has revealed that 63 people, including civilians and military personnel, lost their lives during an attack on Friday night.

Boko Haram terrorists launched an attack on Darul Jamal, which hosts a military base on the Nigeria-Cameroon border. This region has witnessed spates of jihadist attacks.

During a visit to the community on Saturday, the governor expressed grief, condemned the attack and commiserated with those who lost loved ones to the attack.

“It is very sad. This community was settled a few months ago, and they go about their normal businesses, but unfortunately, they experienced a Boko Haram attack yesterday. We are here purposely to commiserate with them and build their resilience.

“As of now, we have confirmed that 63 people have lost their lives, both civilians and the army, but the civilian casualties were more. Close to about 60 civilians. Only about 5 army personnel were lost,” said Zulum.

Speaking further, the Governor added that the strength of the Nigerian Army in numbers is insufficient to curtail the attacks. He also called for the deployment of Forest Guards to vulnerable locations.

“The numerical strength of the army is not enough to contain the situation. So far so good, two sets of Forest Guards have been trained; therefore, one of the solutions that we need to implement immediately is to deploy the trained Forest Guards to most of the locations that are vulnerable, they will protect the forest and communities.”