Gunmen, locally called bandits, have killed six soldiers responding to an attack at Tati, a village in Takum Local Government in Taraba State in the North-east of the country, the Nigerian Military said in an internal communication.
According to a signal sent by the Nigerian Army 93 Battalion in Takum, the commanding officer of the battalion, E.S Okore, a lieutenant colonel, is yet to be accounted for.
The signal said the incident happened around 10 a.m. on May 10. It stated that the bandits in the clash outnumbered the troops.
The signal also said the number of casualties on the side of the enemy could not be confirmed.
It also revealed that troops at Donga while at Ananum village killed two bandits while others fled with gunshot wounds.
It stated that troops recovered 1 AK47 rifle, two AK47 magazines, rounds of 7.62 mm, one pistol, 7 rounds of 9mm ammunition one locally-made gun, charms, and the sum of N15,120, from the bandits after the encounter.
Also, soldiers who were returning from a reinforcement operation in Marraraba were ambushed but carried out anti-ambush drills and fought out the ambush.
The memo stated that troops are still conducting search and rescue operations.
Taraba in the North-east region is witnessing an upsurge in criminality with kidnap-for-ransom on the rise in the state capital, Jalingo, and attacks by bandits are becoming rampant in other parts of the state.
Sources reported how the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) armed group has claimed responsibility for explosions, which have killed at least six people in the state.
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