# Jihadist attacks UN helicopter, two killed

- Link: https://www.military.africa/2020/07/jihadist-attacks-un-helicopter-two-killed/
- Published: 2020-07-05T00:25:13+01:00
- Author: Ekene Lionel

A United Nations transport helicopter was attacked by Jihadist in the Northeastern
part of Nigeria today Saturday, 7 July.

Two civilians including a five-year old child were killed in the attack launched
by Islamist fighters in the town of Damasak on Thursday.

Edward Kaolin UN humanitarian coordinator in Nigeria said in a Press statement that
both the fatalities and several others who were injured in the attack were on the
ground.

**_“A UN Humanitarian Air Service helicopter was hit by bullets during the attack.
No aid workers were on board at the time and crew members are all safe_**,” Kallon
said in a statement.

The helicopter was shot as it approached Damasak and the pilots managed to fly back
to regional capital Maiduguri 150 kilometres (90 miles) away.

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For the time being, the United Nations is suspending rotational flights for one 
week “to engage with government partners and conduct new risk assessments”.

Helicopters provide a vital link carrying humanitarian personnel and delivering 
aid to an estimated 7.8 million people in urgent need of assistance across northeast
Nigeria.

The 10-year jihadist conflict has killed 36,000 people and forced some 2 million
from their home in the region.

Key roads remain too dangerous to travel despite the Nigerian military repeatedly
insisting it has largely defeated the insurgents.

The UN has complained of an uptick in attacks targeting aid workers in the northeast
of the country.

The area around Damasak on the border with Niger is dominated by the Islamic State
West Africa Province (ISWAP), which broke away from the jihadist group Boko Haram
in 2016.In this article:

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In 2016, the UN stated that flying in aid workers by helicopter to remote, hard-
to-reach areas previously cut off from help by Boko Haram violence across northeast
Nigeria has provided more than 45,000 people with aid over the past week.

Many of those receiving aid have received little or no assistance so far, the U.
N. World Food Program (WFP) said.

A military push against the jihadist group Boko Haram has enabled troops to enter
remote parts of northeast Nigeria in the last few months, but insecurity and the
fear of violence has restricted access to some areas by road for many aid agencies

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