Soldier shoots Ethiopian aid worker, colleagues dead in Borno
A soldier attached to the Special Forces of the 25 Task Force (TF) Brigade in the town of Damboa, Borno State went wild and gunned down a civilian aid worker and other soldiers using an AK-47 rifle.
Sahara Reporters report that the armed officer opened fire killing a female humanitarian aid worker and injuring a United Nations pilot.
The soldier was said to have walked off his base at about 3 pm Thursday and went on a shooting rampage using an AK-47 rifle.
While three persons, two soldiers, and a civilian – reportedly lost their lives, the pilot survived with injury.
An Ethiopian aid worker, Alem Muluseta, an official of Medicine de Monde (DM), lost her life in the incident.
In a tribute, one of her colleagues said she worked in another humanitarian agency before joining DM.
Sylvester Joseph, a Facebook user, wrote, “The ugly incident that happened in Damboa yesterday in Borno State is a blow to the entire humanitarian community, as an aid worker you have sacrificed a lot for humanity. Mrs Alem Muluseta, you will be missed surely; my former human resources coordinator at Premiere Urgency International and presently with Medeci de Monde; I sincerely sympathise with immediate family… Rest well Mrs Alem we will surely miss you.”
Insinuating that the soldier who killed the aid worker had mental instability, Joseph wrote, “All I can is that mental health should be taken seriously in this part of the world so such eventuality will not repeat itself anymore.”
Borno State Governor, Professor Babagana Zulum, has also sent a condolence letter to the United Nations following the killing of Alem.
In a letter addressed to the UN resident representative in Nigeria, Mathias Schmale, Zulum said, “I am shocked and deeply saddened by the incident that happened in Damboa yesterday (Thursday).
“My condolence goes to the family of Mrs Alem Muluseta, her colleagues at Medicine de Monde (DM), the whole Humanitarian Community, and the United Nations, who continually make huge sacrifices to support our people.
“My condolence also goes to the families of gallant soldiers who lost their lives in trying to restrain the perpetrator.
“This was a sad isolated incidence, the like of which we have not seen before, and which may not be unconnected with the mental health of the soldier involved.
“The injured pilot has been adequately attended to and he is recovering well. We will do all we can to continue to support him to get what he needs until he recovers.
“I want to assure our partners and the general public that this is an isolated incident and the military is investigating what happened.
“We remain confident that our military and other security agencies are committed to ensuring peace and security of lives and property in Borno State. We will continue to work together with the military, and our partners to support mental health programmes in the theatre”.
