A Sunday attack by Boko Haram militants in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno state has left four people killed.
Local witnesses said Monday that militants stopped the vehicles near Borno’s Nwajurko village and opened fire on the passengers.
The gunmen reportedly emerged from the homes along the Damboa-Biu highway and opened fire on a car as it approached, killing one person. Then they attacked a bus which was driving by, killing three people and seizing five. Three more passengers were also injured in the attack.
Local vigilantes, who fight Boko Haram along the Nigerian military, rushed to the scene only to recover four dead bodies and three people who sustained injuries, witnesses said.
People were reportedly heading to Damboa, which the Nigerian army managed to liberate from the occupation of Boko Haram nearly six months ago.
Militants still remain hidden in rural areas near the city, with locals saying they are using abandoned homes in villages to carry out ambush attacks on cars driving on the roads. Many people have left their homes in the area over the past two years in the face of rising threats from the militants.
According to Amnesty International, more than 17,000 people have been killed in more than six years of militancy by Boko Haram in Nigeria. The Takfiri group, which has paid allegiance to Daesh, has also launched attacks on civilians and security forces in neighboring countries in response to their contribution to a regional drive against it.