Press "Enter" to skip to content

Is ISIS lying about Damaturu attack?

Militant group, ISIS, has claimed responsibility for the attack in Damaturu, Yobe State, Nigeria.  Yet there are no facts to back this claim as ISIS has been known to claim responsibility for attacks not linked to them in the past.

The attack in Yobe claimed the lives of eight soldiers and left one civilian dead with five others sustaining various injuries.

In a statement released by ISIS, it explained how the operation was carried out by its members.

“The fighters took three four-wheel-drive vehicles and others mounted with rifles and heavy weaponry and various ammunition.”

Although the insurgence, Boko Haram, has pledge allegiance to the group some years ago, ISIS did not reveal the reasons for it claim.

The Media Officer of the 3rd Division base in Damaturu, Kayode Ogunsanya, said both sides lost members but he cannot verify how many.

“There was casualty on both sides but I cannot ascertain the number. Men on ground had repelled the attack,” Ogunsanya had said.

This would be the first time the deadly militant group would be claiming responsibility for an attack in Nigeria but there have been cases of terror attacks which they claim involvement but were proven to be false.

Russian Plane Incident

In October 2015, a Russian plane, KGL9268, crashed on Egypt-Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people on board. While journalists and Government of both Countries commenced investigations on the incident, ISIS claimed responsibility for the plane crash, tagging it ‘operation revenge’ for its military campaign in Syria.

“The fighters of [ISIS] were able to down a Russian plane over Sinai province that was carrying over 220 Russian crusaders. They were all killed, thanks be to God.” it said.

Investigations carried out later revealed that the plane was flying in an altitude of 30,000 miles before disappearing off the radar. This means it was out of range for any surface-to-air missiles.

The group later posted a picture in their discontinued magazine, Dabiq, of the Improvised Explosive Device (IED), that was used and how the operation was carried out.

The Committee which investigated the crash revealed two months later that there was no “information indicating unlawful interference.”

Manila Attack

The group also claimed responsibility for an attack carried out in Manila, the capital of Philippines which claimed 38 lives in June 2, when gunman entered Resort World Manila, set fire to Casino tables and shot television screens in the room.

While ISIS lay claim to the attack, Phillipines President, Rodrigo Duterte, said it was a robbery and not a terror attack adding that the group is trying to claim a brutal robbery.

Further investigations revealed 113 Million pesos (£1.8) was found on the man worth gambling chips.

Las Vegas Shooting

Early this month, Stephen Paddock committed what was described as the “Worst Mass Shooting” in modern U.S history, which claimed 59 lives and more than 500 injured in Mandalay Bar Resort and Casino.

The terror group immediately claimed the attack hours later even when investigations have not proved that Paddock had link with ISIS.

The 64-year-old man was also reported not to have any criminal history or known radical beliefs.

ISIS claimed that Paddock was one of the “Soldiers of the Caliphate” and in what seem like buttressing their point, they later posted that he has converted to Islam some Months ago and bears “Abu Abdul Barr al-Amriki.”

Further revelations giving credence to ISIS’s false claim is that there was no pledge found on him to prove he carried out the attack on the group’s behalf which is regular with lone-wolfs.

Although Boko Haram may have claimed allegiance with ISIS, the claimed attack might be to instill fear in Nigerians.

Facebook Comments
ETN24 - Explaining the News is about putting News in the correct context to promote understanding and education. We believe News should educate, not agitate. Our dedication is to fighting Fake and Sensational News, as well as to keep an eye on the media to ensure our peace and sanity are not sold for traffic.