Nigerian Army commander, 20 soldiers killed in Boko Haram attack

A Nigerian army commander and 20 soldiers have been killed in an attack by Boko Haram, according to local media reports. The soldiers were reportedly attacked when they were going from Borogozo where the headquarters of the army's 29 task force brigade is located to Benisheikh where they have a forward operating base (FOB).

Among the bodies reportedly identified were that of a captain and four soldiers. Their bodies have since been moved to the 7 division hospital in Maiduguri, Borno state capital.

In June, at least 28 soldiers were reportedly killed while the insurgents ransacked a military base in Gajiram, Nganzai local government area of Borno.

The ISIS-aligned terrorist group was founded in 2002 and was initially focused on opposing Western education but it started military attacks in 2009 to create an Islamic State. The United State designated the group as a terrorist organization in 2013.

The group has carried out large-scale attacks inside Nigeria, including an attack on the U.N. headquarters in Abuja in 2011. The group made international headlines in 2014 when it kidnapped nearly 300 schoolgirls in April. The group carried out a multi-day massacre in a number of villages in January 2015 that killed around 2000 civilians.