The Nation Newspaper

Tag: boko haram

  • Suicide members kill eight in Borno IDPs camp

    Two female suicide bombers have killed at least eight people at a camp for people displaced by the Boko Haram insurgency in northeast Nigeria, a community security force member and a customs official said on Thursday.

    The bombings happened at about 8:00am (0700 GMT) on Wednesday in the town of Banki on the edge of Borno State, near the border with Cameroon, Reuters reported.

    An attack in February on an internally displaced persons’ camp, also in Borno, killed 60 people.

    Details of Wednesday’s attack were slow to emerge as Banki is remote and largely disconnected from mobile phone networks..

    “Two female suicide bombers who were initially thought to be IDPs blew themselves up in the camp,” Khalid Aji, a member of a grassroots community security group based in Konduga, a Borno district nearly 100km from Banki, told Reuters.

    “The first one occurred at about 8:00am and the second followed few minutes later. Eight people died and 12 were wounded.”

  • Boko haram landmines kill 5 in Yobe, 9 injured

    Five  farmers have been killed and nine injured by Boko Haram landmines  in Yobe Goniri area of Gujba local government area in Yobe state.
    The Yobe Goniri people returned home less than two weeks ago and were going to clear their farm lands for the farming season when they were killed.
    Details later
  • “Don’t Celebrate Us Yet”….Army

    “Don’t Celebrate Us Yet”….Army

    The Nigerian Army has been warned individuals and groups that are celebrating the routing and decimation of the Boko Haram terrorists to exercise restrain, instead they should be more vigillant to ensure that the group does not encroach into their areas.

     

    According to the Army Acting Director of Public Relations, Colonel Sani Usman, the attention of the Nigerian Army has been drawn to a number of groups and individuals celebrating the routing out and decimation of Boko Haram terrorists from Nigeria, “so much as we thank them for that, it is imperative to state that we do not begrudge such persons, their desire to identify and associate themselves with this success”.

    Continuing the Army spokesman said, “however, the Nigerian Army wishes to disassociate itself from such celebrations and solidarity rallies. We also would like to advice that they should tread with caution as this could be distractive to us. The public are please informed that the terrorists are surreptitiously fanning out of their last enclaves in Sambisa to cause havoc or seek refuge elsewhere”.

     

    “Therefore, there is need for all to be more vigilant and security conscious to enable us clear the remnants of these terrorists wherever they might flee” he concluded.

     

    We would like to reassure the public that we will remain professional and focused in clearing the remnants of these criminals on the Nigerian soil.

  • Army uncovers Boko Haram’s new recruitment strategy

    Army uncovers Boko Haram’s new recruitment strategy

    … Sect providing loans to entrepreneurs, artisans in Northeast

    The Nigerian Army on Wednesday said Boko Haram has devised a new strategy for recruiting youths in the northeast.

    The Acting Director of Defence Information, Brig. Gen. Rabe AAbubakar, in a statement said Boko Haram terrorists are at the moment giving loans to young entrepreneurs and artisans to induce them into the sect.

    The statement reads: “It has come to the knowledge of the Defence Headquarters that Boko Haram terrorists have now devised another means of recruiting unsuspecting youths into their fold.   In this clandestine dispensation, Boko Haram terrorists have resorted to providing loans to young entrepreneurs and artisans in the Northeast as a way of inducing them for recruitment.

    “The major targets of the unholy business engagement are youths in the Northeast, especially the butchers, traders, tailors, beauticians and other vocational entrepreneurs who could be easily enticed with such loan without paying attention to sundry inherent dangers associated with the acceptance of such goodies from this satanic group or unfamiliar source.  After such loans, the beneficiaries are given the option of either joining the group or risk being killed if they fail to pay the loan as at when due, whereas the payment has been surreptitiously programmed to fail by the benefactor, the Boko Haram.

    “It is pertinent to state that having been effectively decimated and degraded, the remnant or surviving splinter groups of Boko Haram are desperate to recruit more people into their ranks and files as a result of sustained onslaught against them by the troops.  The Defence Headquarters hereby advises the general public, especially those in the North east, to constantly be wary and conscious of various tactics of the desperate Boko Haram militants.  They should be guided to avoid loan or financial assistance from non-conventional source but from conventional financial institutions such as banks, organised trade unions or institutionalised savings and loans establishments.  Acting otherwise may lead to painful and untimely death from the blood-thirsty Boko Haram terrorists.”

     

  • Boko Haram: U.S. gives extra $40m for humanitarian needs

    Boko Haram: U.S. gives extra $40m for humanitarian needs

    The U.S. Ambassador to the UN, Samantha Power, has announced nearly 40 million dollars in new humanitarian assistance to support people whose lives have been affected by Boko Haram insurgency.

     

    Power said that she made the announcement in Cameroon during a trip to the Lake Chad Basin region to highlight the growing threat of Boko Haram.

     

    The U.S. State Department made this known in a statement that was issued on Wednesday.

     

    It said that approximately 7 million people were suffering displacement, deprivation, and disease from the consequences of armed conflict in Nigeria, including 2.2 million internally displaced persons.

     

    “As a result of the prolonged crisis, communities, who have generously hosted IDPs, have also exhausted their resources and find themselves struggling to make ends meet,” it said.

     

    There are nearly 170,000 Nigerian refugees, who have fled to Cameroon, Chad and Niger countries whose citizens have also suffered from Boko Haram attacks and consequent displacement.

     

    The statement said that the funding would support the work of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

     

    The UN World Food Programme (WFP) and other international aid organisations in the region promise to provide essential protection and assistance to those affected.

     

    This new funding brings the total U.S. humanitarian assistance for the Lake Chad Basin humanitarian response in the 2015 and 2016 financial years to more than 237 million dollars.

     

    “Funding announced today will allow UNHCR to provide Nigerian refugees with essential assistance, such as access to clean water and sanitation facilities.

     

    “Health care, essential household items, shelter, programmes, which protect children, and activities to prevent and respond to gender-based violence,” the statement said.

     

    It will also support UNHCR’s protection efforts across the region, including maintaining access to asylum.

     

    “The U.S. contribution will also allow our partners to extend and expand the reach of emergency food assistance in north eastern Nigeria.

     

    “By providing the most vulnerable people, including displaced persons, with cash and vouchers for food, the U.S. is promoting household food security while supporting local markets and trade,” the statement said.

     

    In total, the UN estimates that there are 9.2 million people across the Lake Chad Basin region in need of immediate assistance and has requested 535 million dollars for the 2016 response.

     

    The U.S. urged other donors to join us in responding to this humanitarian crisis.

  • Boko Haram insurgents can no longer move freely, says Air Force chief

    Chief of Air Staff (CAS) Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar has debunked claims that Nigerian soldiers on Monday fled from Boko Haram terrorists during an attack in Borno State.

    BBC Africa had reported that Nigerian soldiers fled from the fierce attack from the terrorists, who reportedly carried sophisticated weapons.

    But Abubakar, who was in Lagos to inaugurate five projects completed by the Logistics Command, including the installation of executive seats on the C-130 aircraft, insisted that the military had made substantial progress in the war.

    This is just as he said the Air Force would take delivery of more platforms, following government’s approval.

    The AirForce chief said the military was at the tail end of its operation in the Northeast, adding that the insurgents could no longer move freely the way they used to in 2014 and early last year.

    Abubakar said: “Compare the situation in 2014 or the beginning of 2015 and today. You will agree with me that there is a world of difference.

    “Then, Boko Haram was moving in convoys of 15 to 20 vehicles from one community to the other. Such a thing is not happening again today.

    “I really do not want to comment on what happened on Monday because I don’t have details. But generally, I can tell you that we are making substantial progress in dealing with this problem. We are at the tail end of the Northeast operations.”

    The Air Force chief noted  that the night training, which began in Lagos on Monday, was a routine exercise.

    “Training is a continuous process for every Air Force. From time to time, we have programmes we undertake to ensure that our officers and men are in the best of shapes to  deal with security challenges. It is just a routine training,” he said.

    Praising the Logistics Command for doing an excellent job, Air Marshal Abubakar said he was in Lagos to assess infrastructure and ensure things were going well.

    He said: “Lagos is logistics base of the Air Force. No matter how excellent an operational plan is, if it is not backed by logistics, you will run into difficulties.“

    Inaugurating the drainage and primary school classrooms at the 105 Communication Depot in Shasha, The Air Force chief said flood had always been a recurring decimal and a major problem confronting the base since its establishment.

    “When it rains, especially at the peak of the rainy seasons, the roads within the depot are impassable. We also lost our fence on several occasions in the past as a result of flood.”

    The Air Officer Commanding  (AOC), Air Vice Marshal Muhammadu Mohammed, said the projects would motivate the personnel to continuously put in their best for the attainment of the Force’ objectives.

    He said: “For instance, the avionics overhaul centre is expected to reinforce our culture of self – reliance and prudent management of resources in conformity with one of the key drivers of the CAS’ vision.

    “During the installation of the test benches of the Overhaul Centre, some of the C-130H aircraft rotables were repaired. They include Altitude Direction Indicator, Autopilot Amplifier and ATC Transponder. This is a clear indication that the dividend derivable from the project is enormous.”

    Also inaugurated were the rehabilitated water system and reconstructed 70 septic tanks at the Sam Ethnam Base as well as reroofing of vehicle shades and reactivation of Jet-A1 tankers at 407 Equipment Supply Depot.

     

  • Boko Haram fighters ambush army GOC’s convoy in Borno

    Boko Haram fighters on Tuesday morning ambushed the convoy of the Acting General Officer Commanding (GOC), 7 Division of Nigerian Army, Brig. Gen. Victor Ezugwu, while he was visiting  troops in Bama, Borno State.

    The ambush was later cleared by soldiers and several terrorists were killed in the process.

    One soldier was also killed and two others injured in the incident.

    Items recovered from the terrorists included a Toyota Hilux vehicle, two AK-47 rifles and several ammunitions.

     

  • ‘45 Boko Haram suspects in Lagos prison’

    NO fewer than forty-five suspected Boko Haram terrorists are in detention in Kirikiri Maximum Prison, Lagos.

    They suspects have been in the prison since the last seven months awaiting trial, following an order by a Magistrate, Mrs. Adeola Adedayo of an Isolo Magistrate Court.

    A rights group, the Prisoners’ Rights Advocacy Initiative (PRAI), is urging Amnesty International to carry out an independent investigation  of the 45 suspected Boko Haram members arrested in Lagos last year by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), with a view to ascertaining their true status.

    The petition, signed by PRAI Director, Ahmed Adetola–Kazeem dated April 5,  is entitled: Call for Investigation and Prevention of Rights Abuse of 45 Terrrorism Suspects  Detained in Kirikiri Maximum Prison since November.

    The petition was also sent to the Executive Secretary, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and the Lagos Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice.

    The  suspects, whose ages range between 15 and 44 and mostly commercial motorcycle riders, traders, suya sellers, security guards, sachet (pure)  water factory workers and indigeners of Borno State, were allegedly arrested  last year in various parts of Lagos State by Sarki Mai Mustapha of Ijora and his agents and handed over to officials of Directorate of Security Service (DSS) on the suspicion that they were planning to launch a terror attack on Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi, a highbrow area of Lagos.

  • Boko Haram attack troops at Kareto

    Boko Haram attack troops at Kareto

    Boko Haram terrorists in the early hours of Monday attacked the Nigerian troops of 113 Battalion at Kareto Northern Borno State.

    The troops have been battling the insurgents since the early hours day.

    Confirming this to the Nation, the Army Acting Director of Public Relations Colonel Sani Usman said the attack actually took place early in the morning “please be informed that our troops are currently engaged in fierce battle with Boko Haram terrorists at Kareto, Northern Borno State. I will get back to you with details later,” he promised.

     

  • ‘Boko Haram not defeated until Chibok girls are freed’

    The National Union of Textiles Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTWN) has said the Federal Government cannot claim to have ended Boko Haram insurgency until the missing girls are freed.

    Addressing a news conference in Kaduna at the weekend to mark the two years anniversary of the abduction of Chibok girls, the union’s National President, Comrade John Adaji, said the incident left the country with a big injury yet to be healed.

    He said: “We hear good news of how the insurgents have been dislodged by soldiers. Check points have disappeared and we hardly hear of bomb blasts. But we cannot celebrate when our girls kidnapped in Chibok are still missing. To me, insurgency ends when the girls are found.”

    The General Secretary, Comrade Issa Aremu, said 17 parents of the victims have reportedly died, following the trauma of their missing daughters.

    Represented by the Deputy National Secretary, Comrade Dele Ojo, he noted that “those who abducted the 219 girls have criminally kidnapped the communities of future leaders.

    “We must join forces with the forces of progress and development worldwide to rescue our beloved girls.”

    Aremu said: “Global terrorism is making the world of work more precarious.

    “Thousands of workers in Nigeria, France, Belgium, Syria and Iraq have been abducted and killed by terrorists, who see defenceless workers as soft targets.

    “The International Labour Organisation (ILO) must, therefore, redouble efforts with other international agencies to rid the world of terror. Social dialogue and negotiated settlements are tested ILO’s mechanisms for resolving social conflicts, not senseless violence in which innocent Chibok girls are victims. Nothing justifies criminal abductions.

    “Chibok girls are missing, but they are not forgotten until they are rescued.”