Boko Haram fighters

Boko Haram militants have signalled once again that they still constitute a lethal force that can still kill Nigerians at will as they shot dead 18 women at a funeral in a village in Adamawa State, in Nigeria’s northeast.

The Boko Haram killers sacked the village, set houses on fire and shot at random, witnesses and local government officials said on Friday.

The attack took place at about 5 p.m. (1600 GMT) on Thursday in the village of Kuda in Adamawa State, 48 hours after the militants attacked Kautuva village, near Chibok on Tuesday, killing at least four persons  and kidnapping another four women.

Resident Moses Kwagh said  that people waited until three hours after the attack and had then counted 18 women’s bodies.

Some women were still missing, he said.

A police source confirmed the attack but said it was not yet clear how many people had been killed. The military did not respond to a request for comment.

State lawmaker Emmanuel Tsamdusaid: “I am yet to get the details on how it happened and the real number of people killed. I have sent hunters to go to the area and get me the details because people are afraid to go to the village.”

Kuda is close to the Sambisa Forest, a vast colonial-era game reserve where Boko Haram militants hide in secluded camps to avoid the Nigerian military. The village was attacked by Boko Haram militants in February.

Under President Muhammadu Buhari’s command and aided by Nigeria’s neighbours, the army has recaptured most of the territory seized by Boko Haram, but the group still regularly stages guerrilla attacks.

“When we said that Boko Haram is still in this place some people sit in Abuja and claim that there is no more Boko Haram, but see what has happen,” Kwagh said.

*Reported by Reuters