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| Shock as Militants Attack Nigerian Military Prison | |
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| DAKAR, Senegal — Militants suspected of being members of the group Boko Haram carried out a daring daylight raid early Friday on a heavily guarded military prison in northern Nigeria, freeing some of their comrades but also suffering heavy losses, witnesses and officials said. | DAKAR, Senegal — Militants suspected of being members of the group Boko Haram carried out a daring daylight raid early Friday on a heavily guarded military prison in northern Nigeria, freeing some of their comrades but also suffering heavy losses, witnesses and officials said. |
| A gun battle raged for part of the morning in the northern city of Maiduguri, where the militants hurled explosives into the prison in a central military barracks and fighter jets ranged overhead before the Islamists were pushed back. The bodies of 87 Boko Haram members were later taken to Maiduguri’s main hospital, an official at the hospital said. | A gun battle raged for part of the morning in the northern city of Maiduguri, where the militants hurled explosives into the prison in a central military barracks and fighter jets ranged overhead before the Islamists were pushed back. The bodies of 87 Boko Haram members were later taken to Maiduguri’s main hospital, an official at the hospital said. |
| The attack was one of the most audacious yet in the Islamists’ five-year insurgency against Nigeria’s embattled federal government. Boko Haram has staged prison raids in the past, but never has it tried to penetrate into the heart of the military establishment in Maiduguri, the city at the center of the insurgency. | The attack was one of the most audacious yet in the Islamists’ five-year insurgency against Nigeria’s embattled federal government. Boko Haram has staged prison raids in the past, but never has it tried to penetrate into the heart of the military establishment in Maiduguri, the city at the center of the insurgency. |
| The militants on Friday stormed Giwa Barracks, where the Nigerian military has imprisoned dozens of young men accused of being Boko Haram members in the past several years. Human rights groups, witnesses and relatives say many have died from mistreatment and torture in the barracks. Many being held there were simply bystanders rounded up in mass sweeps, rights groups and others say, but others were militants. | The militants on Friday stormed Giwa Barracks, where the Nigerian military has imprisoned dozens of young men accused of being Boko Haram members in the past several years. Human rights groups, witnesses and relatives say many have died from mistreatment and torture in the barracks. Many being held there were simply bystanders rounded up in mass sweeps, rights groups and others say, but others were militants. |
| It was these last that the raiders sought to free on Friday. Witnesses reported seeing hundreds of insurgents, many in flowing robes, attacking Giwa and nearby neighborhoods around the University of Maiduguri. Houses were burned, and civilians were also attacked, apparently in an attempt to distract the military. | It was these last that the raiders sought to free on Friday. Witnesses reported seeing hundreds of insurgents, many in flowing robes, attacking Giwa and nearby neighborhoods around the University of Maiduguri. Houses were burned, and civilians were also attacked, apparently in an attempt to distract the military. |
| A university lecturer who lives in the neighborhood, reached Friday morning by phone, said: “Right now, we are under attack. The insurgent boys, they stormed the main barracks. They succeeded in releasing all the detainees.” | A university lecturer who lives in the neighborhood, reached Friday morning by phone, said: “Right now, we are under attack. The insurgent boys, they stormed the main barracks. They succeeded in releasing all the detainees.” |
| He added: “There is serious fighting. They succeeded in breaking into the cells. They took away a substantial number.” | He added: “There is serious fighting. They succeeded in breaking into the cells. They took away a substantial number.” |
| Still, it was unclear how many of the militants actually escaped. A photograph taken by a local journalist showing bodies under the gaze of antimilitant youth vigilantes, as well as the testimony of the hospital official, suggested that a substantial number of the insurgents were killed. | Still, it was unclear how many of the militants actually escaped. A photograph taken by a local journalist showing bodies under the gaze of antimilitant youth vigilantes, as well as the testimony of the hospital official, suggested that a substantial number of the insurgents were killed. |
| The governor of Borno State, of which Maiduguri is the capital, said that “they succeeded in freeing their comrades in detention” but that “a lot of the terrorists were equally killed” and that some civilians appeared to have died in the attack. | The governor of Borno State, of which Maiduguri is the capital, said that “they succeeded in freeing their comrades in detention” but that “a lot of the terrorists were equally killed” and that some civilians appeared to have died in the attack. |
| The governor, Kashim Shettima, has been outspoken in criticizing the military response to the Boko Haram threat as underprepared. He said Friday’s attack vindicated his position since “they can come and penetrate and free their colleagues in the most impenetrable of fortresses.” | The governor, Kashim Shettima, has been outspoken in criticizing the military response to the Boko Haram threat as underprepared. He said Friday’s attack vindicated his position since “they can come and penetrate and free their colleagues in the most impenetrable of fortresses.” |
| The university lecturer said that as he spoke, frightened residents were fleeing his neighborhood and running toward Maiduguri’s center seeking shelter. He said he had also seen angry residents burning militants’ bodies in the streets. | The university lecturer said that as he spoke, frightened residents were fleeing his neighborhood and running toward Maiduguri’s center seeking shelter. He said he had also seen angry residents burning militants’ bodies in the streets. |
| The Nigerian military, in a rare statement to the news media, said the attack had been “foiled” with “heavy human casualty” on the Boko Haram side. The military has come under criticism for failing to defend civilians against repeated insurgent attacks. Such violence has killed more than 400 people in recent weeks, making the first months of 2014 perhaps the bloodiest period of the insurgency. | The Nigerian military, in a rare statement to the news media, said the attack had been “foiled” with “heavy human casualty” on the Boko Haram side. The military has come under criticism for failing to defend civilians against repeated insurgent attacks. Such violence has killed more than 400 people in recent weeks, making the first months of 2014 perhaps the bloodiest period of the insurgency. |
| On the defensive, the military has often simply refused to comment on the spate of insurgent attacks. Friday’s statement was a departure. It said “pockets of terrorists” assaulted “a military location in Maiduguri with a view to freeing their colleagues who are being held in detention,” but were “successfully repelled.” | On the defensive, the military has often simply refused to comment on the spate of insurgent attacks. Friday’s statement was a departure. It said “pockets of terrorists” assaulted “a military location in Maiduguri with a view to freeing their colleagues who are being held in detention,” but were “successfully repelled.” |