A suspected Boko Haram male suicide bomber on Friday gained entrance to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp in Gamboru-Ngala, Borno State and detonated a bomb, killing six members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) and injuring six IDPs.

This is the first ever attack on the camp, which is less than 10 kilometres from the Cameroon borders, as inflow and outflow of human traffic is strictly regulated.

According to one of the IDP leaders in the camp, the suicide bomber got in from the rear of the camp, near the latrines and close to the CJTF post, before detonating the bomb that was strapped to his body.

“He came in through the north of the camp between 7pm and 8pm and sneaked into the CJTF members before detonating his bomb,” he said.

“Six CJTF members and the bomber were killed while six IDPs, including a woman, were injured. They have been taken to the hospital.”

Gamboru Ngala IDP camp is one of the biggest camps in Borno, housing about 70,000 IDPs from different local government areas, including Dikwa, Marte, Kala-Balge, Bama, etc.

It is located very close to the 3 Battalion Headquarters, which also oversees Rann, capital of Kala-Balge, where the military bombed civilians in January, and Logomani, a town bordering Dikwa and Gamboru-Ngala.

More to follow…