On Monday, no less than 17 soldiers were killed after bandits overran the forward operating base near Mando in Kaduna State.

The incident occurred at about 4:45 p.m. on Monday and lasted up to three hours and 15 minutes before the personnel were dislodged from the location, a military signal seen by Peoples Gazette said.

Although the signal stated that 11 soldiers were killed, a top military source confirmed to The Gazette that 17 died in the attack.

Military officers suspected the attackers used special weapons similar to the one used to bomb the Kaduna train to carry out the latest attack on the troops deployed to combat the growing menace of armed banditry across the northwestern swathes of the country.

An abductee in the recent train attack on Kaduna was quoted as saying that bandits had dangerous weapons.

Meanwhile, the army said that 19 soldiers sustained injuries, while three Vigilante members were killed in the attack.

Also, one Legion MRAP, one Cobra Armored Personnel Carrier, Steyr APC, and one DShK machine gun were burnt, while 12 Heckler & Koch 21, 14 AK47 rifles and three pump action guns were missing.

Personnel injured in the attack were taken to Jibril Maigwari Hospital and 271 NAF Detachment Medical Centre in Birnin-Gwari, Kaduna, for treatment.

The soldiers killed in action were evacuated to 44 Nigerian Army Reference Hospital morgue in Kaduna.

The army had described the incident as the most significant loss witnessed in a long time and wondered if the troops had been taken by surprise.

However, when contacted, the spokesperson for the Nigerian Army, Onyema Nwachukwu, did not respond to The Gazette’s request seeking comment on the matter.

Bandits have in recent times attacked military bases in the country, marking a significant challenge in the fights against insecurity.

In September last year, armed bandits overran a forward operating base in Mutumji, Dansadau, area of Zamfara State, killed 12 officers and seized weapons.

The same month, bandits invaded a joint military camp code-named ‘Burkusuma camp’ in Sabon Birni local government area of Sokoto, killing many soldiers of the Nigerian Army.