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At least 83 Nigerian soldiers, including a commanding officer, are still missing days after they came under a Boko Haram attack, Premium Timesreports.
Top level military sources disclosed that the soldiers were still missing in action as of Friday morning, four days after the attack.
The Army confirmed the attack in a statement on Tuesday, but has not given further updates. It did not also admit 83 soldiers were missing.
The latest update from several military personnel, follows earlier report byNews24 on how Nigerian troops drowned in a river as they scampered for safety in the face of a superior firepower from the terrorists.
While about 22 of the fleeing soldiers were later rescued by their Nigerien counterparts and dispatched to a hospital in Diffa, southern Niger, several others were fatally wounded after Boko Haram opened fire on them when they jumped into the River Yobe.
The Army leadership has established contact with the 22 soldiers —including two that sustained serious gunshot wounds— recuperating in the Niger hospital.
The missing Commanding Officer of 223 Tank Battalion in Gashigar, was identified as K. Yusuf, a colonel.
Military sources said the troops could not withstand Boko Haram because they had only two light armour tanks to work with.
