The military hospital in Cameroon’s capital, Yaounde, is overwhelmed with wounded Cameroon and Chadian troops of the regional force currently working to rout Boko Haram from its strongholds in Nigeria and border areas. The hospital has a capacity of 200 beds, but about two times the number are seeking medical attention there.

Martin Chengwa says he collapsed after six members of his 10-person unit were killed during raids on the town of Achgachia that straddles the border with Nigeria. The 26-year-old Cameroonian soldier was rushed to the military hospital in Yaounde.

“I have a problem of just confusion because I saw some of my friends that were dead but now I am okay. I am still hoping to go back. I have been here since December,” he said.

Wounded Chadian and Cameroonian soldiers

He comes here for check-ups two times a week. This hospital takes in Chadian and Cameroonian soldiers wounded in the regional fight against Boko Haram. The Nigerian militant group began carrying out attacks in Cameroon, Niger and Chad last year.

Chadian soldier Nagash Salim is here recovering from a fractured arm and an amputated leg.

He says he remembers he got shot near his chest in a Boko Haram ambush in Limani on Cameroon’s border with Nigeria. He says he is surprised he is still alive.