In Umunze, a hamlet in the Orumba South Local Government Area of Anambra State in southeast Nigeria, gunmen have slain five soldiers.
The event took place on Wednesday at around 12:30 p.m. next to a Zenith Bank location in the neighborhood, adjacent to the well-known Nkwo Umunze market.
Five soldiers were reportedly killed in the attack when the militants opened fire on them as they were in their Sienna patrol car.
Unknown resident who was reportedly hit by stray gunfire was also killed in the attack.
Comfort Mokaogwu, a market shop owner, claimed that market vendors quickly closed their doors out of fear of being attacked.
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“People were running helter-skelter. I thank God, it (the attack) did not happen close to my shop,” she said.
A video clip of the slain soldiers has gone viral on social media.
In the clip, seen two bodies of the soldiers were inside their sienna vehicle – the vehicle had blood stains.
The soldiers’ Sienna vehicle has inscriptions, “Army” at the back and “Army Patrol” on the door side.
Another body of a soldier was seen on the ground near the vehicle. They were all in their military uniform and in the pool of blood.
Sources said two bodies of other soldiers, who were initially alive after the attack, were taken to a nearby shop by sympathetic residents.
The two soldiers, sources said, later died despite attempts by residents to resuscitate them after the attack.
“Army people I just saw here now, drinking,” a shocked unidentified resident was heard saying in the background of the video clip.
The body of the unidentified resident was seen lying in the middle of the road, just a few metres away from those of the slain soldiers.
Army spokesperson Onyema Nwachukwu, did not respond to calls and a text message seeking comments from him on the attack.
When contacted, the police spokesperson in Anambra State, Tochukwu Ikenga, confirmed the incident.
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He said the details of the attack were still sketchy.
Mr Ikenga, a deputy superintendent of police, said the commissioner of police in the state deployed some police operatives in the area on getting information about the attack.
“The situation is being monitored,” he said.
more assaults
Due to the numerous attacks by armed individuals around the region, security has deteriorated in the southeast of Nigeria.
Attacks frequently target government personnel, security agencies, and facilities.
The most recent incidence took place around four months after two soldiers in Imo State, in the southeast of Nigeria, were killed by gunmen who subsequently beheaded them.
Gunmen attacked an army checkpoint in Amodu Awkunanaw, a hamlet in Enugu State’s Nkanu West Local Government Area, on Tuesday, and two people were feared dead.
The Nigerian government has accused the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra of being responsible for the deadly attacks in the region. But the group has repeatedly denied their involvement in the attacks.
The separatist group is leading agitation for an independent state of Biafra which they want carved out from the South-east and some parts of the South-south Nigeria.
Leader of the secessionist group, Nnamdi Kanu, is being detained in Abuja where he is facing trial for terrorism.
