By Bwarat Audu
One soldier and one civilian were on Sunday killed at Takanda-Giwa village on the Bauchi-Jos highway as some unknown gunmen attacked an Army checkpoint in the area, while another civilian was injured.
The attack, it was gathered, caused panic on the highway as motorists coming from Bauchi and those coming from Jos were forced to abandoned their vehicles and ran for dear life, while some were said to have made U-turn.
Unconfirmed report said the casualty figure might be higher as they said five soldiers were killed in the operation, while the attackers made away with the soldiers’ Toyota Hilux van parked at the checkpoint.
But it could also not be confirmed if any of the attackers lost their lives in the exchange of fire with the soldiers.
However, a military source said only one soldier, who was a driver was killed in the attack, while a civilian was caught in the cross fire between soldiers on duty at the checkpoint and the gunmen.
The source added that Sunday’s attack by the gunmen was a retaliatory attack as security personnel had been chasing the gunmen for sometimes now.
He revealed that even on Saturday, security operatives chased the gunmen from one area to the other.
The source, who would not want to be named, however, declared that the Army and their security agencies were on top of the situation.
According to him, more personnel had been deployed in the area to pursue the fleeing gunmen.
