Nigerian troops repel attack on base in Borno

Nigerian troops repelled an attack on the 101 Special Forces Battalion in Kukawa, Borno State, with support from the military’s Air Component, the military said. Its preliminary assessment put the number of attackers killed at more than 25 and said 14 bodies had been recovered. The figures have not been presented as a final count. The military said the attackers approached from four directions and were driven back after troops engaged them with air support. Survivors fled, according to the statement attributed to Acting Military Information Officer Mohammed Goni. The military said troops recovered weapons and ammunition, including six AK-47 rifles, and that further battlefield operations were underway to track fleeing attackers and recover additional weapons. The statement also acknowledged that some Nigerian soldiers died in the encounter but gave no number. A separate account, citing unnamed security sources, said soldiers were also injured; the military statement cited here did not quantify injuries. Details of the military’s own casualties remain unclear. The preliminary attacker toll and the recovery of 14 bodies are military-reported figures.