Boko Haram kills three soldiers, overrun Nigerian army base

Boko Haram jihadists have killed three soldiers in an attack on a military base in northeast Nigeria's Borno state near Lake Chad, military and civilian sources said.
Fighters from Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) driving in several trucks attacked the base in Cross-Kauwa village on Tuesday and engaged troops in an hours-long gunfight, the sources told AFP late Wednesday.
"We lost three soldiers in the fight," said a military officer who asked not to be named.
"The soldiers fought the terrorists but were overpowered and had to withdraw from the base," he added.
A Cross-Kauwa resident said the Islamists stormed the village in trucks fitted with anti-aircraft guns around 8:00 pm (1900 GMT).
"The insurgents fought the soldiers for three hours and forced them to abandon the base," said the resident who wanted to be identified only by his first name, Bukar, for fear of reprisals.
Buba said troops withdrew to the garrison town of Monguno, 18 kilometres (11 miles) away while others stopped at another base in nearby Kekeno which Boko Haram has made several failed attempts to overrun in recent weeks.
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