ABUJA, July 29 (Xinhua) -- Ten Boko Haram militants were killed early Monday as a multinational force thwarted an attack on a military base in Baga, a town in the northeastern Nigerian state of Borno near the Lake Chad fringes, a military spokesman said.
One soldier was killed in a gunfight which ensued between the militants and the troops, said Col. Timothy Antigha, the spokesperson for the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), in a statement.
Several Boko Haram fighters escaped with gunshot wounds as blood-stained tracks were observed in the area as the MNJTF and national troops dealt a deadly blow to the terrorists, Antigha said.
Five soldiers were also injured during the gunfight, he confirmed.
The multinational force comprises troops from Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Benin.
Antigha said what was meant to be a dawn surprise attack became a nightmare for the terrorists.
About 30 Boko Haram militants had infested the locality with the aim of carrying out an audacious assault on the troops, he said.
Four suicide bombers were also identified among them.
"In addition, assorted arms and ammunition were impounded from other terrorists who fled in disarray," he said.
According to the spokesman, the MNJTF, acting cohesively with national forces, will continue to pursue courses of action necessary for the achievement of its mandate in the Lake Chad Basin.
The operation, he added, would be further intensified through raids, ambushes and fighting patrols to clear terrorists from their last stronghold in the Lake Chad Basin.
On June 22, at least 42 Boko Haram fighters were killed in a clearance operation against them by the multinational force along the Lake Chad fringes.
Last December, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari and his colleagues of the Lake Chad Basin Commission renewed their commitment to ending the Boko Haram insurgency, declaring "a fight to finish."
Boko Haram has been trying since 2009 to establish an Islamist state in northeastern Nigeria, extending its attacks to countries in the Lake Chad Basin.
The group posed enormous security, humanitarian and governance challenges in the basin, according to the United Nations.
