85 killed, children burnt to death in Boko Haram attack in Nigeria

Scores of people, including children, have been killed in a Nigerian town by Boko Haram fighters who shot at villagers and set fire to their homes in the latest deadly attack by the Islamist militant group.

The extremists armed with guns and explosives stormed Dalori, some seven miles from the city of Maiduguri, late on Sunday.

They began shooting indiscriminately and set fire to homes and businesses after driving into the village shortly after evening prayers. Residents who tried to escape by fleeing to nearby bush were later hunted down and shot dead by insurgents. 

A child survivor who hid in a tree said he could hear other children scream while being burned alive by Boko Haram militants, during the jihadist group’s latest siege.

Colonel Mustapha Anka, a spokesperson for the army, said the assailants arrived “in two cars and on motorcycles, they opened fire then set light to homes.” Three female suicide bombers who had initially tried to mingle with the villagers “were intercepted, then blew themselves up,” he said.

Charred corpses and bodies ridden with bullet wounds littered the streets after the horrific attack, which lasted for four hours.

Villagers who survived the attack said they fled into the bush when the assailants entered Dalori.

“We were seated outside our home shortly after the Isha prayer when we heard gunshots and within a few minutes the invaders had arrived,” said Malam Masa Dalori, a community leader.

Boko Haram has killed about 20,000 people and driven 2.5 million from their homes.