Boko Haram militants killed 17 herders and stole their cattle following clashes in the troubled northeastern Nigerian state of Borno, self-defense militia said Monday.
The militants on Saturday attacked herders guarding their cattle in a pasture near Airamne village in Mafa district, the militiamen said.
“Seventeen herders were killed in the fight and all their cattle taken away,” militia leader Babakura Kolo said.
“The herders put (up) resistance but were outgunned and outnumbered by the attackers, who had better weapons,” said Kolo.
He said the militants launched the attack from camps in nearby Gajiganna forest, where they relocated after being partially forced out from their stronghold in Sambisa forest by militant rivals ISWAP and the Nigerian army.
ISWAP — which stands for the so-called Islamic State West Africa Province — split from Boko Haram in 2016 and rose to become the dominant group in the region’s long-running militant turmoil.
