In a Nigerian attack, suspected Boko Haram militants have killed at least 37 individuals

At least 37 people were killed when suspected Islamist terrorists from Boko Haram stormed into a hamlet in northeastern Nigeria on motorbikes, opened fire in a market, and set stores and residences on fire, according to a military officer.

Because civilians are still unaccounted for and are believed to be dead after being driven into the bush by combatants, residents warned the death toll may be much higher.

The incident happened on Sunday afternoon in Yobe, one of the three states leading the 15-year-long insurgency. Over two million Nigerians have been displaced and thousands of them have died.

The incident in Yobe’s Mafa village was reportedly reprisal for the local vigilantes’ apparent killing of two suspected Boko Haram fighters, according to Yobe police spokesperson Dungus Abdulkarim.

Abdulkarim continued, “The militants chased other residents into the bush and shot them after they shot at the market and set buildings on fire.”

“The terrorists killed many people, but we are yet to ascertain the actual number of casualties,” Abdulkarim stated.

According to a military official who traveled to Mafa on Monday night with the army’s commanding commander for Yobe, the village’s route was wired for explosives, which the forces were able to neutralize.

“We located 37 bodies and transported them to Babangida General Hospital,” stated the officer, who wished to remain anonymous due to lack of authority to address the press.

A villager named Modu Mohammed reported that over 100 people had died and that numerous more were still unaccounted for. There were still some dead in the jungle, he claimed.