Terror on Damaturu–Biu Road: Boko Haram kidnaps the vice chair, several councillors in Borno

Terror on Damaturu–Biu Road: Boko Haram kidnaps the vice chair, several councillors in Borno

By Tada Jutha, Maiduguri
 

Suspected Boko Haram insurgents have abducted the vice chairman of Biu Local Government Council and two newly elected councillors in a fresh attack along the volatile Kamuya–Buni/Yadi axis linking Borno and Yobe states.

The victims, identified as Alhaji Saidu and the councillors representing Zarawuyaku and Miringa wards, were elected during last Saturday’s local government elections. Their abduction occurred on Wednesday while they were travelling from Biu, the council headquarters, to Maiduguri.

A credible security source confirmed the incident on Thursday, disclosing that the politicians were seized along the 130-kilometer Damaturu–Biu highway, a route long plagued by insurgent activities. The source clarified that the attack was not an isolated incident.

“Besides the three newly elected council officials, an unspecified number of other travellers were also abducted the same evening,” the source said. “They were passengers in a Hisbah bus heading from Potiskum to Biu when the terrorists struck.”

According to the source, one of the abducted councillors had previously served as vice chairman of the Biu Local Government Council, raising further concern over the targeted nature of the attack.

Meanwhile, a community leader from Miringa, who spoke on condition of anonymity, appealed to the Borno State Government, the military, and other security agencies to urgently intensify rescue efforts. He expressed fears that the captives may have been taken towards the Sambisa Forest, a known hideout of insurgent groups.

Over the past seven years, the Kamuya–Buni/Yadi–Miringa corridor has earned a grim reputation as a dangerous stretch, marked by frequent cases of kidnappings and killings. Motorists, commuters, and farmers have continued to fall victim to attacks by Boko Haram and its rival faction, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), underscoring persistent security challenges in the region.