Boko Haram: NEMA evacuates 5,000 people from Dikwa LGA

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) on Wednesday said it had evacuated 5,000 starved persons from liberated interland communities in Dikwa Local Government Area (LGA), Borno.

The communities were recently liberated by the Nigerian military after been occupied by suspected Boko Haram insurgents for several months.

NEMA North East Coordinator, Alhaji Mohammed Kanar, disclosed this to newsmen in Maiduguri.

Kanar said those evacuated were mainly children, women and elderly, who were freed in the recent military operation in the area.

“The people evacuated were virtually imprisoned in their communities as the routes were blocked by members of the insurgents, who captured major towns of Dikwa and Ngala local government areas.

“They were living on small rations as they were compelled to depend on their livestock and farm produce without freedom to trading and commerce with the rest of the world during the occupation,” he said.

He said those evacuated were camped at Sanda Kyarimi Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp, Maiduguri, for proper care.

“Some of affected persons, who spoke to officials of NEMA, said they had not eaten for about three days and had to trek long distances to get to Dikwa, Headquarters of Dikwa LGA,” Kanar said.