17 Yobe Youths Killed By Boko Haram For Evading Tax

 17 youths in Gurokayeya village, Geidam LGA of Yobe State have been killed by suspected Boko Haram terrorists over failure to pay tax.

The insurgents it was gathered, stormed the village around 10pm on Monday, forced the residents to gather in one place and executed selective killings.

“They selected 21 youths who were between the ages of 20 to 30 and shot them at close range, while young children and the old were spared.

“Seventeen died instantly, while the remaining four were rushed to the hospital in critical conditions,” a security source told Daily Trust.

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According to the source, the Boko Haram insurgents killed the youths after several warnings to the villagers to pay their taxes but to no avail.

“After the heinous act, they handed another stern warning to the villagers on the consequences of tax evasion before they left,” he said.

Babagana Aisami Geidam a human rights activist told newsmen that 16 corpses had been buried according to Islamic rites, noting that military personnel had been deployed to the affected village.

The Army Assistant Director of Public Relations Officer, Operation Lafiya Dole, Captain Muhammad Shehu, while confirming the incident, added that the terrorists also alleged that the villagers were given information to the troops who were flushing them out from their hideout.

“They (terrorists) attacked the villagers as revenge for alleging that they are helping us with useful information to flush them out.

“I cannot give you the accurate number of casualties, but all I knew is that military personnel have been deployed and normalcy has been restored,” he said.