Despite a state of emergency declared in Borno State for more than a month and large-scale successes recorded by the military against the Boko Haram terrorist sect, gunmen still managed to attack four communities of Hwa’a, Kunde, Gathahure and Gjigga of Gwoza Hills settlements, torching four churches with Improvised Explosives Devices (IEDS) and petro-bombs Thursday afternoon.
According to Tada Garuta, a resident of Kunde, the gunmen climbed the hills on foot with explosives and petro-bombs, and chanted ‘God is great’ in Arabic, before setting four local churches ablaze; and ransacked and emptied their bans of grains along with some livestock to the next community of Gathahure and Hwa’a at dawn.
The attacked communities are located in Gwoza Council area of Borno state, which contains Mandara Hills on the Camerounian border, and 151 kilometres South of Maiduguri, the state capital.
Two churches at Hrazah and Hembe of hill dwellers communities; were also torched by the gunmen in April this year with the killing of two residents.
Garuta also told newsmen in the Maiduguri, Bama road Motor Park on Sunday that after torching another church in Hwa’a community, the gunmen also killed Reverend Jacob Kwiza (rtd) of Church of Christ in Nigeria (COCIN), while picking mangoes at his father’s orchard on the hills settlement of Hwa’a.
Gwoza Local Government Area is populated by a lot of indigenous Christians and has also been the scene of many attacks by Islamic fundamentalists suspected to be Boko Haram members who target churches and Christians.