| 2014 Gamboru Ngala massacre | |
|---|---|
| Part of theBoko Haram insurgency | |
| Location | 12°22′32″N14°12′13″E / 12.37556°N 14.20361°E /12.37556; 14.20361 Gamboru &Ngala,Borno,Nigeria |
| Date | 5 May 2014 (WAT (UTC+1)) |
| Target | Gamboru,Ngala and its residents |
Attack type | Mass shooting,arson,mass murder |
| Weapons | AK-47s,RPGs |
| Deaths | At least 300[1] |
| Injured | Unknown |
| Perpetrator | Boko Haram |
On the night of 5–6 May 2014,Boko Haram militants attacked thetwin towns ofGamboru andNgala inBorno State, northeastern Nigeria.[2] About 310 residents were killed in the 12-hourmassacre, and the town was largely destroyed.[1][3][2]
During the same night, Boko Haramabducted eight girls aged between 12 and 15 from northeast Nigeria,[4][5] a number later raised to eleven.[6]
Gamboru Ngala accommodated the securitygarrison, which had left the town before the attack to pursue the perpetrators of theChibok schoolgirl kidnapping.[7] Borno State is considered pivotal for Boko Haram.[7] According to the NigeriansenatorAhmed Zanna and several residents, the security forces left Gamboru Ngala after Boko Haram militants had spread rumours that thekidnapped schoolgirls had been spotted elsewhere.[8]
Armed withAK-47s andRPGs, the militants attacked the town on twoarmored personnel carriers, stolen from theNigerian military several months earlier.[9] The militants opened fire on the people at a busy market that was open at night when temperatures cool.[10] Havingset homes ablaze, the militantsgunned down residents who tried to escape from the fire.[1]
The official death toll was first set at 200 on 7 May. Zanna and local resident Waziri Hassan both reported at least 336 deaths.[9]
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link)