The officials of Yobe State government led by the deputy governor, Idi Barde-Gubana, has conducted funeral prayers for the 34 victims who were killed in an attack by suspected Boko Haram terrorists on Sunday.

The deputy governor, who sympathised with the victims, said the state government will work closely with the Federal Government to provide military formation in the area to forestall further occurrence.

He also directed the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) to ensure that the displaced persons as well as those who sustained injuries are well taken cared off at their camps and hospitals.

Ali Abdullahi, a physically challenged, who was an eye witness to the attack last Sunday, revealed many people were killed, several shops were destroyed but he was spared after the assailants discovered his disability.

“It was Boko Haram that came to our community and killed several people. When they saw I have disability, they asked me to go back. They are suspecting that we are the ones giving the military information to attack and killed them,” Abdullahi said.

Zanna Umar, a Mafa resident, said, “We gathered that there are about one hundred and twenty five people killed. Here we buried 34, there are people that carried their corpses and buried them about forty in number, and the rest, we will go and bury them tomorrow.

While the security adviser to Governor Mai Mala Buni gave an update on the number of causalities, the deputy governor sympathised with the victims and directed SEMA to provide the immediate needs of the displaced persons as well as those injured.

After making a donation of N30 million to the affected families, he also explained the state government will collaborate with the security personnel to establish a military formation in the area.

The latest attack on the Mafa community is described as the worst in the state since the Boko Haram insurgency commenced 14 years ago.

AFP