Newly surfaced images from the aftermath of last week’s Boko Haram attack in Rann, Borno State, indicate that several Nigerian soldiers, policemen, and civilians may have been captured alive and summarily executed by the insurgents.
The photographs, which have circulated among security sources, show multiple bodies bound and shot at close range, with visible gunshot wounds to the head. Analysts say the positioning of the bodies and the nature of the injuries strongly suggest that the victims were restrained before being killed.
The attack, which occurred on Thursday evening, targeted the military base of the 3rd Battalion in Rann, headquarters of Kala-Balge Local Government Area. According to security officials familiar with the incident, Boko Haram fighters stormed the facility around 6:00 p.m. and sustained a fierce gun battle with troops for nearly five hours.
In addition to the military casualties, three humanitarian aid workers were killed — a doctor reportedly working with UNICEF and two personnel from the International Organization for Migration. Three other humanitarian workers, including two with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and one attached to UNICEF, were abducted.
Following the attack, the United Nations and Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders, MSF) withdrew all humanitarian staff from Rann, citing the extreme danger now associated with the location.
In a statement issued by Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General António Guterres, the organization expressed shock and condemned the attack, noting:
“At the time of the incident, over 40 humanitarian workers were present in Rann. All personnel have now been evacuated, and humanitarian operations in the area are temporarily suspended.”
The Secretary-General expressed condolences to the families of the victims and emphasized that attacks on civilians and humanitarian workers constitute violations of international humanitarian law. He called for the perpetrators to be brought to justice.
MSF also confirmed the suspension of its medical activities in Rann. Spokesperson Maro Verli disclosed that the organization had been supporting the community of approximately 40,000 displaced persons since 2017. A mobile team had been operating in the area, and a permanent presence established in September 2017.
The group’s statement reads in part:
“Following the violent attack in Rann on Thursday, MSF has decided to halt its operations pending an evaluation of the security situation.”
The assault on Rann is the latest in a series of increasingly violent Boko Haram operations targeting both security forces and humanitarian missions in Nigeria’s northeast. Security analysts warn that the deliberate targeting of aid workers, combined with the execution-style killings suggested in the recovered images, represents a troubling escalation.
Authorities have yet to provide an official casualty figure for military personnel, but sources within the security community describe the losses as “significant.”
Investigations are ongoing, and the fate of the abducted aid workers remains unknown.
