The Nation Newspaper

Tag: boko haram

  • Chad declares state of emergency in Boko Haram-hit region

    Chad has declared a state of emergency in the Lake Chad region after a series of raids and suicide bombings there by the Boko Haram sect, the government said on Monday.

    Chad was instrumental in forcing Boko Haram to cede territory earlier this year, undermining its six-year campaign to carve out a Nigerian caliphate, Reuters reported.

    But guerrillas have since ramped up attacks in remote border areas around Lake Chad, killing at least three people in a Chadian village on Sunday and three Nigerian refugees in northern Cameroon on Monday.

    Chad’s Communications Minister, Hassan Sylla Bakari, said the order, effective immediately, would grant authorities new powers to search and monitor residents in the region.

    There has not been a state of emergency in Chad, one of Africa’s military heavyweights, since a series of rebellions in the 2000s springing from its volatile east. Neighbouring Niger also has a state of emergency in its border region of Diffa.

    A top United Nations official said last month that an 8,700 regional task force will begin joint raids against Boko Haram when the rainy season ends soon.

     

  • Five arrested in Senegal over Boko Haram ties

    Senegal said on Monday it had arrested five people suspected of links to the Boko Haram sect – a development that could mark a significant expansion of the movement’s operations.

    The five were arrested last month in the suburbs of Senegal’s capital Dakar and the central town of Kaolak, more than 2,500 km (1,500 miles) from the sect heartland in northeast Nigeria, a senior justice ministry official said.

    “We believe those arrested have ties with Boko Haram,” the official told Reuters.

    A judge charged them on Friday with alleged relations with a terrorism organisation, financing of terrorism and money laundering, the official added.

    Boko Haram has sworn allegiance to Islamic State and killed thousands in Nigeria and its neighbours Cameroon, Chad and Niger in its bid to carve out an Islamist state.

    Senegal, a majority-Muslim country, has traditionally been a bulwark of stability in the region.

    A Muslim preacher was arrested last week in the southern town of Kolda on charges relating to statements he had made during sermons.

    French troops intervened in Senegal’s neighbour Mali in January 2013 to drive out Islamist militants who had taken over much of the north of the country during a separatist uprising.

  • Female suicide bombers attack Cameroon mosque

    Two female suicide bombers suspected to belong to the Boko Haram sect blew themselves on Monday near a mosque in Cameroon’s Far North province, military officials told Reuters.

    It was not immediately clear if the explosions caused other fatalities.

    Boko Haram has led a six-year campaign for an Islamist state in northeastern Nigeria.

    Neighbouring countries including Cameroon joined forces against the group last year, driving its offensive beyond Nigeria and displacing thousands of people.

  • Boko Haram kills four in Chad

    Two bomb blasts carried out by women attackers in the flashpoint area of Lake Chad on Sunday killed four people and wounded 14 others, a security source in the Chadian capital N’Djamena said.

    “The two women suicide bombers and two civilians died in the blast,” the source told AFP on condition of anonymity, adding that 14 others were injured in the attack blamed on the Boko Haram sect on Ngouboua village near the Nigerian border.

    The village has suffered repeated attacks by Boko Haram jihadists since they first launched operations in Chad in February.

    Suicide bombings — many by women and girls — are fast becoming Boko Haram’s preferred method of inflicting civilian casualties.

    The deadliest attack on Chad’s side of the lake took place on October 10, when three suicide attacks at Baga Sola killed 41 people, according to the Chadian government.

     

     

  • Troops rescue 14 children, six women from Boko Haram enclaves

    The military has announced that troops of 103 Battalion under the 21 Brigade in Borno State on Saturday morning rescued 20 people from Boko Haram terrorists.

    According to a statement signed by the Media Coordinator of Operation Lafiya Dole, Col. Sani Tukur, the rescued people included 14 children and six women who were held captive in the Bama axis where the operation was carried out.

    The statement added that four Boko Haram enclaves were cleared during the operation, with some insurgents killed and two captured alive.

    It reads: “In continuation of the offensive operations to clear the Northeast of Boko Haram activities, the troops of 103 Battalion under 21 Brigade early this morning conducted 23 kilometer wide clearance operations in RIGAGA and its adjourning villages in Bama axis.

    “The operation recorded a major success. Four Boko Haram enclaves along the route of the operations were cleared and a number of terrorists killed. Two of them were captured alive and currently undergoing investigation in accordance with the Nigerian Army rules of engagement.

    “The troops also rescued 20 people held in captivity by terrorists in the area. They included 14 children and six women. The recued persons are currently receiving medical and other necessary attention in our facility.”

  • Military clears more terrorists’ camps in Borno

    The military on Friday announced another breakthrough in the ongoing operation against Boko Haram insurgents in Borno State.

    A statement issued by the Media Coordinator of Operation Lafiya Dole, Col. Tukur Gusau, said the troops have cleared nine more terrorists’ stronghold in Lassa axis of Borno State.

    The statement reads:
    “In a major boost, troops of 115 Task Force Battallion under 28 Task Force Brigade while on clearance operations from November 3-5 cleared nine more terrorists’ strongholds around Lassa axis.

    The terrorists’ camps cleared included Lassa, Muthavo, Dagu, Kumabza, Isge, Unworo,, Zangore, Kilesaka and Pumpum.

    “During the offensive, four Boko Haram terrorists met their waterloo in the hands of gallant troops of the Nigerian Army. Some of the terrorists fled the place and abandoned their weapons.

    “Some of the weapons abandoned by the terrorists are seven den guns.”

  • Niger air force bombs Boko Haram base, arrests 20

    Niger’s air force bombed a Boko Haram base in the country’s southeast and arrested more than 20 militants, security sources said on Thursday, in its biggest counter-attack in eight months.

    Members of Boko Haram based mostly in northeastern Nigeria have repeatedly attacked the Lake Chad area, including Niger’s southern border region of Diffa, Reuters reported.

    Government forces tracked the militants after a soldier was killed when a military vehicle was blown up by remote control by the group near Lake Chad on Monday, the sources said.

    “Our air forces destroyed this nest, but we do not yet have an official death toll,” a military officer told Reuters.

    Soldiers arrested the remaining fighters.

    In October, Niger’s parliament approved a three-month extension of a 15-day state of emergency in Diffa in order to boost security.

     

  • Tunde Kelani’s new skit warns of Boko Haram

    Tunde Kelani’s new skit warns of Boko Haram

    That the fear of the terrorist group, Boko Haram is tearing away at societies in the country is no news. However, popular filmmaker Tunde Kelani is ensuring that the dastardly acts could be curtailed by citizens. To this end, a new skit, E Fura (Beware) was released on his website, www.tundekelani.tv.

    He calls it a public service announcement on the Boko Haram terrorism.

    “It is a security alert for all and sundry to be vigilant in the wake of Boko Haram attacks on the Nigerian society and its neighbouring countries,” said the filmmaker.

    The website, www.Tundekelani.tv is a platform to watch Nollywood movies in English and Yoruba. The 9:26 minute flick encourages communal living despite practicing different religions. The skit also shows a group of artistes dancing and singing, using different worship modes. The film advocates that practitioners of African Tradition Religion (ATR), Christianity and Islam had co-existed peacefully before the advent of the Boko Haram crisis.

    Boko Haram since 2009, has launched a reign of terror in the northeast, killing over 10, 000 people and creating more than three million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Nigeria.

  • Boko Haram: Reps decry delayed entitlements of slain soldiers

    Boko Haram: Reps decry delayed entitlements of slain soldiers

    THE House of Representatives has advised the Federal Government to pay the entitlements accruing to the nation’s slain military personnel to their families within three months.

    Government, the lawmakers urged, should establish a trust fund for the purpose of providing scholarship to the children of the dead security personnel up to the tertiary level.

    They were also keen on the immediate payment of entitlements of those that died fighting Boko Haram insurgents.

    The decision followed the adoption of a motion by Johnson Agbonayima (PDP, Edo) ,who said the trauma of the effects of the delayed payment on the families of the fallen security personnel were better imagined.

    According to the lawmaker, the payment of entitlements of fallen soldiers to their families since the outbreak of Boko Haram insurgency in 2009 fell below global best practices.

    He said: “Many months after the death of these heroes, no payment of entitlements have been made to their families, thereby leaving their spouses and children in desperate situations without any form of livelihood.

    “Delay in payment of entitlements of deceased military personnel might dampen the morale and willingness of serving military personnel from serving their fatherland, and being willing to pay the ultimate sacrifice, if the need arises”.

    Nnenna Ukeje (PDP, Abia,) in her contribution, emphasised the importance of prompt payment of the entitlements, saying: “It is crucial in fostering a stronger and committed military in the country”.

    Sani Abdu (APC, Bauchi) said investigation into the delayed payment of the entitlements by the House Committee on Defence was required.

    The motion was adopted after it was put to a voice vote by the Speaker, Yakubu Dogara.

    House Committee on Defence chaired, led by Muktar Aliyu (APC, Borno), was mandated to investigate the rationale behind the non-payment of the entitlements.

  • Danjuma urges end to insurgency

    Former Minister of Defence, Lt. Gen. Theophilos Yakubu Danjuma (rtd) ‎on Tuesday said Nigeria must be ready to end the Boko Haram insurgency.

    He said there was the need to urgently restore peace and confidence to the citizens especially in areas worst hit by insurgency and other parts of the country.

    Speaking at the inauguration of the Sokoto Catholic Diocese multi-purpose Secretariat, Danjuma who was the Special Guest of Honour also noted that the country was facing critical challenges ‎of times, saying “ we are at a critical stage of our history where terrorists are holding communities to hostage and hoisting their flags as their territory.”

    “Inter religious conflicts have been one of the most critical problems and catalysts to the country’s under development, unity and spirit of brotherhood.”

    He noted that the indiscriminate killings of innocent souls by the insurgents remained worrisome,‎ saying that” it is a critical challenge that both government and Nigerians have to collectively phase out.”

    He commended the Bishop of the Sokoto Diocese, Hassan Matthew Kukah, for facilitating and ensuring the completion of the secretariat within the lean resources available.

    “It is my hope that the edifice will serve the purpose for which is built,” the retired army general stated.