by Rachel Ogbu

55 people have been confirmed dead after fresh attacks from Boko Haram in Bama, Borno State, on Tuesday.

22 police officers, 14 prison officials, two soldiers and four civilians including three children and a woman, were killed by the sect who reportedly freed 105 prisoners and attacked the 200 Tank Battallion, a military Barracks.

The Joint Military Task Force confirmed that13 of the sect’s members died in the clash with the task force members.

The Punch reports:

Spokesman for the JTF, Sagir Musa, confirmed this to Reuters.

Sources in the town claimed that about 300 suspected members of Boko Haram stormed the town, first attacking the 200 Tank Battallion, a military Barracks.

The suspected terrorists were, however, repelled by soldiers, who  killed several insurgents who were forced to retreat with the corpses of their members.

They were unable to take away 10 of their members’ bodies.

One other member, who was injured, was  tied to the stake when the JTF and journalists visited.

Bama’s police station, military barracks and government buildings were razed, an eyewitness in Bama said.

Bama is a small, remote town in northeastern Borno State, where Boko Haram first began its uprising in 2009.

Meanwhile, Senate Joint Committee investigating the Baga massacre  on Tuesday visited Maiduguri, Borno State capital, en-route the site of the tragedy.

Our correspondent learnt that members of three standing committees of the Senate namely: Police Affairs, Defence, National Security and Intelligence, were in the state on a fact-finding mission.

The state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Inuwa Bwala, confirmed this in a telephone interview.

“Members of the committee are here. They just arrived Maiduguri. We are going into a meeting that is all I can tell you for now,” Bwala said.