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Tag: boko haram

  • UN okays force to battle Boko Haram

    UN okays force to battle Boko Haram

    •150 schools shut in Cameroon •10,000 displaced

    The United Nations Security Council yesterday demanded that Boko Haram “immediately and unequivocally cease all hostilities and all abuses of human rights and violations”.

    In a statement by the President of the Council, the UN accused Boko Haram of carrying out kidnappings, killings, hostage-taking, pillaging, rape, sexual slavery and recruitment of child soldiers since it launched its campaign in 2009.

    It urged African countries to step up plans for a multinational force to fight Boko Haram—in the world body’s  first overall response to the threat posed by the insurgents.

    The council issued a 13-point statement strongly condemning attacks by Boko Haram, in particular those involving children used as suicide bombers, and demanded an end to the violence.

    On the eve of a key meeting in Niger of regional leaders, the 15-member council urged Nigeria’s neighbours to advance planning for the deployment of a multinational task force to drive out Boko Haram.

    Chad is set to contribute a sizeable contingent to the force along with Cameroon, Niger, Nigeria and Benin. The multinational force has been under discussion since last year, but divisions over the scale and scope of its operations have slowed down the deployment.

    The statement from the council came as Boko Haram fighters seized scores of hostages in a raid in neighboring Cameroon on Sunday.

    The council expressed “deep concern that the activities of Boko Haram are undermining the peace and stability of the west and central African region.”

    The statement was the first adopted by the council on the threat posed by Boko Haram, which is on the UN terrorists list. Previous statements focused on condemning specific attacks.

    Ghanaian President Dramani Mahama also favours the deployment of a regional force to battle the sect. In an interview with a German radio station, the Ghannian leader said he would press for support from the African Union during its Summit next week.

    As a result of Boko Haram’s attacks, more than 10,000 panic-stricken Cameroonians are fleeing border regions with Borno state for safer locations, government officials said yesterday.

    Boko Haram has, in the past month, raided at least two dozen villages and towns in northern Cameroon. The group also kidnapped dozens of people during an attack on Mabass village on Sunday.

    The insurgents are looting food and livestock, and a humanitarian and food crisis looms, Cameroon’s Minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralisation Rene Emmanuel Sadi, said yesterday.

    Students and teachers are among those who have fled their homes. More than 10 schools were deserted after attacks Sunday, adding to the about 140 schools that have shut their doors because of the insurgency bleeding over into Cameroon, said Cameroon’s Minister of Education Monouna Fotso. The government is trying to accommodate the affected students, Fotso said.

    There is a moral obligation for safer schools to admit the children despite limited resources and space, said Bernadette Appi, a teacher at a primary school in Maroua, where some children have been moved.

    Boko Haram attacked Mabass village, in the Far North region of Cameroon, early Sunday and staged its largest kidnapping yet in Cameroon, according to the government. The military said up to 60 people were kidnapped, though about 30 eventually escaped.

    Chadian troops began arriving in Cameroon on Sunday to support Cameroon’s army in the fight against the militants.

    The Boko Haram insurgency has killed thousands and driven 1.6 million people from their homes, including across borders into Cameroon, Niger and Chad.

    Also at the Hague, Netherland, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court condemned the escalation in “appalling levels” of violence in Nigeria’s northeastern Islamic uprising and warns she will prosecute members of any party to the conflict most responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

    A statement yesterday from Fatou Bensouda said her office is continuing to investigate allegations Boko Haram extremists are killing large numbers of civilians, using girls and boys to participate in the conflict and forcing massive numbers of people from their homes.

    She also warns the government of Nigeria of its obligation to prosecute crimes that “deeply shock the conscience of humanity.”

  • UN to Boko Haram: Release Chibok girls immediately

    UN to Boko Haram: Release Chibok girls immediately

    … Reaffirms sect’s inclusion in sanction list

    … Condemns rising attacks

    The United Nations Security Council on Tuesday asked the Boko Haram sect to release immediately and unconditionally the over 200 schoolgirls abducted from the Government Girls’ Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, in April last year and other unknown persons currently in the sect’s captivity.

    The Council also reaffirmed its decision to place Boko Haram on the Al-Qaeda sanctions list.

    The Security Council, according to a statement issued by the National Information Officer, United Nations Information Centre in Lagos, Oluseyi Soremekun, condemned the recent attacks by Boko Haram insurgents in some parts of Borno and Yobe States.

    It also frowned at the increasing attacks in the Lake Chad Basin region along Nigeria’s borders with Chad and Cameroon and in the northern provinces of Cameroon.

    There had been escalation in attacks by Boko Haram, in Maiduguri, Baga (Borno State) and Potiskum, Yobe State, involving children coerced by the sect to act as suicide bombers.

    The attacks had resulted in the massive destruction of civilian homes and significant civilian casualties.

    The Council, according to the statement, reaffirmed that “terrorism in all its forms and manifestations is criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of its motivation, wherever, whenever and by whomsoever committed.”

    It insisted that terrorism cannot and should not be associated with any religion, nationality, civilization or ethnic group.

    The statement reads:

    “The Security Council expresses its deep sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and expresses its sympathy to all those injured in these attacks, and to the people and the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as well as the people and Governments of other affected countries.

    “The Security Council strongly condemns and deplores all abuses of human rights and where applicable, violations of international humanitarian law by the terrorist group Boko Haram, since 2009, including those involving violence against civilian populations, notably women and children, kidnappings, killings, hostage-taking, pillaging, rape, sexual slavery and other sexual violence, recruitment of children and destruction of civilian property.

    “The Security Council expresses serious concern over the reported violations and abuses of human rights and large-scale displacements of civilian population, including into Nigeria’s neighbouring countries. The Council recalls its decision to place Boko Haram on the A1-Qaida sanctions list.

    “The Security Council demands that Boko Haram immediately and unequivocally cease all hostilities and all abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law and disarm and demobilise.

    “The Security Council demands the immediate and unconditional release of all those abducted who remain in captivity, including the 276 schoolgirls abducted in Chibok, Bomo State in April 2014. The Security Council recognizes that some of such acts may amount to crimes against humanity and stresses that those responsible for all abuses and violations of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law must be held accountable.

    “The Security Council reiterates the primary responsibility of Member States to protect civilian populations on their territories, in accordance with their obligations under international law.

    “The Security Council expresses its concern at the scale of the growing humanitarian crisis caused by the activities of Boko Haram, which has resulted in the large-scale displacement of Nigerians within the country and into neighbouring Cameroon, Chad and Niger. The Security Council, in this regard, commends the support provided to the refugees by the Governments of the said countries, including with the assistance of humanitarian actors and relevant United Nations entities, and calls on the international community to provide its support in areas which require urgent attention.”

     

  • International pressure mounts against Boko Haram

    International pressure mounts against Boko Haram

    •Cameroon army rescues 24 hostages

    The International pressure on Boko Haram will intensify as a high level ministerial meeting holds today in Niger Republic capital Niamey.

    The French foreign ministry which announced the meting in a statement yesterday did not give the details of who are expected at the meeting but it is believed that the foreign ministers of West African countries will participate.

    The statement said the meeting will “reinforce the regional mobilisation and engage more international support” in the battle to eliminate the sect.

    South African Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula also said yesterday that “dealing with terror groups such as Boko Haram and al-Shabaab will dominate talks at the African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, next week.”

    Meanwhile, France yesterday strongly condemned the latest attacks in Nigeria and Cameroon by the sect.

    “France reaffirms its solidarity and its support for the Cameroonian, Chadian and Nigerian populations in the fight against Boko Haram,” an official statement said.

    It added that the Foreign Ministry “praised the commitment of the Chadian authorities and supports a robust and concerted regional response” to the long series of attacks by Boko Haram.

    “We have been contributing for several months to get a regional dimension for this crisis to be taken into account,” the French statement said, noting that there has been sharing of intelligence and progress on international sanctions and the building of a multinational force to fight terrorism in the region.”

    Yesterday Cameroon’s army said it freed 24 of some 80 hostages kidnapped during a cross-border attack a defence ministry spokesman said.

    The kidnapping which occurred in the north of Cameroon on Sunday around the village of Mabass, saw around 30 adults and 50 children taken hostage by the Islamist group.

     

  • Chad, Cameroon join forces against Boko Haram

    Chad, Cameroon join forces against Boko Haram

    •Sect kidnaps 80 in Cameroon •5 die in Potiskum blast

    International troops are set to battle Boko Haram – the fundamentalist sect responsible for the insurgency in the Northeast and across the border in Cameroon.

    Boko Haram struck in Cameroon yesterday, attacking a village. It kidnapped 80 citizens, including children and women.

    In Potiskum, the commercial capital of Yobe State – one of the three states under the sect’s brutality, the others being Borno and Adamawa –  a suicide bomber believed to be working for the sect detonated an explosive device at a motor park. Five people, including the bomber, died.

    Yesterday, Chadian troops were deployed in Northern Cameroon to join forces with their hosts to fight the sect across the border with Nigeria.

    The African Union (AU) will next week take a decision on whether to create a force to fight Boko Haram.

    Ghana President John Mahama, Chairman of Sub-regional Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) told Reuters news agency that ECOWAS will seek approval from the AU next week.

    A contingent of soldiers from Chad has arrived in northern Cameroon where it will deploy to the Nigerian border as part of efforts to contain the Boko Haram insurgency, a spokesman for Cameroon’s Defence ministry said yesterday.

    Boko Haram, which aims to carve out an Islamist state in northern Nigeria, has stepped up attacks as Africa’s biggest economy prepares for a Feb. 14 presidential election.

    The group has expanded its operational zone into northern Cameroon over the past year, prompting Yaounde to deploy thousands of additional forces, including elite troops, to its border with Nigeria.

    A convoy of troops from Chad arrived in Maroua, the main town in Cameroon’s Far-North Region, late on Saturday, Colonel Didier Badjeck said while declining to say how many soldiers had been dispatched by N’Djamena.

    “In the coming days, they will be deployed in the war zone on the border with Nigeria so that they can join our defence forces to crush and prevent incursions of Boko Haram into Cameroonian territory,” he said.

    Cameroon’s President Paul Biya, who recently appealed for international assistance against Boko Haram, announced last week that he was expecting the arrival of a large Chadian force to support his country’s efforts against the militants.

    Chad has a reputation as one of the region’s best militaries and helped French forces drive al Qaeda-linked Islamists from northern Mali in 2013.

    Despite the growing cross-border nature of the threat posed by Boko Haram, efforts to deploy a joint force from Nigeria, Chad, Niger and Cameroon to take on the Islamist fighters have faltered.

    Following increasing involvement of Chadians and Nigeriens in Boko Haram insurgency, the Federal Government may protest to the two countries.

    It was also learnt that hope has finally dimmed on the negotiation between the Federal Government and Boko Haram being facilitated by Chad.

    The military has, however, begun the interrogation of five Boko Haram insurgents, who were captured last week in Biu.

    It was learnt that the five suspects had been relocated to a discreet military facility where they have been making “ useful statements” on the operation of the sect.

    Investigation by our correspondent revealed that the Federal Government is no longer comfortable with the involvement of Chadians and Nigerien in Boko Haram insurgency.

    Security reports on the invasion of Biu clearly confirmed the high presence of Chadian mercenaries among the insurgents, most of whom were killed.

    It was learnt that the government was baffled that the same Chadian government had allegedly been assisting the Federal Government to negotiate with Boko Haram.

    The two  circumstances were described as “tactically irreconcilable” by the government, a top military source disclosed last night.

    The highly-placed source said: “The Federal Government may protest to Chad and Niger Republic over the increasing involvement of their nationals in Boko Haram insurgency.

    “In the spirit of Paris Pact, President Goodluck Jonathan has wielded enormous diplomatic goodwill to carry these neighbours along but they are not reciprocating. Nigeria cannot understand why Chadian troops withdrew from Baga before the insurgents struck and killed over 150 people.

    “From the tactical analysis of the insurgency so far, there are sufficient clues to show that Boko Haram has well-established bases or outposts in these countries.

    “We are in the process of making all our findings on the high number of Chadian elements in Boko Haram.”

    But there were indications last night that hope might have finally dimmed on the ongoing negotiation with Boko Haram being coordinated by the Principal Secretary to the President, Mallam Hassan Tukur.

    A top source, privy to the negotiation in government who spoke in confidence, said: “There is no serious headway because the sect has refused to respect ceasefire agreements.

    “And with more Chadians fighting for Boko Haram, the element of trust in the negotiation is a bit shaky. The insurgents have not been forthcoming at all.”

    The interrogation of five insurgents captured in Biu last week has started at a discreet military facility.

    A competent contact said: “Those captured had been relocated to a military facility for intense grilling where they have made useful statements.

    “We will keep you posted on our findings after a comprehensive investigation is concluded.”

    On the ongoing dismissal of soldiers in some Army formations, the source added: “These were those who refused to fight in spite of the modern equipment provided for them.

    “The law provides for jail terms, life sentence or death sentence. When some of them were sentenced to death, there was public outcry. Are you saying the military must not act when there is obvious case of indiscipline?

    “We also discovered that some of those who spoke with CNN were those dismissed for deliberately refusing to fight against Boko Haram.”

    Suspected Boko Haram fighters from Nigeria kidnapped around 80 people, many of them children, and killed three other yesterday  in a cross-border attacks on villages in northern Cameroon, army and government officials said.

    The kidnappings, among the largest abductions on Cameroonian soil since the militants began expanding their zone of operations across the border last year, came as neighbouring Chad deployed troops to support Cameroon’s forces in the area.

    “According to our initial information, around 30 adults, most of them herders, and 50 young girls and boys aged between 10 and 15 years were abducted,” a senior army officer deployed to northern Cameroon told Reuters.

    He said the early-morning attack had targeted the village of Mabass and several other villages along the porous border with Nigeria. Soldiers intervened and exchanged fire with the raiders for around two hours, he added.

    Government spokesman Issa Tchiroma confirmed the attack, in which he said three people had been killed, as well as the kidnappings, but was not able to say with certainty how many people had been taken in the raid. Around 80 homes were destroyed, he said.

  • Boko Haram out to decimate Nigeria, says NOSCEF

    The Northern States Christian Elders Forum (NOSCEF) has dispelled popular notion that northern Muslims are behind the deadly activities of radical Islamic sect, Boko Haram.

    The group, NOSEF stated, is after Christians and Muslims based on its terror attacks on churches and mosques in northern states.

    This was contained in a statement by chair of NOSCEF’s chairman, Elder Olaiya Phillips.

    “I have heard that some people say the rise in Boko Haram is caused by the Northern Muslim community but that is not correct.

    “Boko Haram claim to be Muslims but they also kill Muslims as they do Christians.

    While admitting that Christians have been more affected by Boko Haram’s attacks, Phillips pointed out the sect is out to fight the entire nation, regardless of religious affiliations.

    Offering his condolences to the victims of terror attacks by Boko Haram, Phillips condemned the “callous murder of innocent Nigerians,” describing it as utterly despicable.

    He lamented that the real issues affecting northerners on a daily basis are being forgotten during the terror attacks, urging Christians in the region to come out strongly with votes come February.

    According to him: “We asked Northern politicians of all parties to support us in our call for a united front against Boko Haram, but they have spent more time bulldozing our churches than fighting Boko Haram.

    “If your family and friends were threatened with murder on a daily basis, wouldn’t you want to make sure the next government was going to do something about it?”

  • Boko Haram, Baga and Nigeria’s federal republic of insecurity

    Boko Haram, Baga and Nigeria’s federal republic of insecurity

    On Sunday night January 11, 2015, CNN International called me to provide some insights during a live interview on the Boko Haram menace and killings. Especially, at Baga. The bloodied Borno city of Baga. I did.

    To understand the level of impunity and violation of the national security of Nigeria by the violent, terrorist radical Islamic group Boko Haram, you have to know about their horrendous massacre of more than 2,000 persons of all ages and gender in Baga.

    Baga is near Lake Chad and had not been conquered by Boko until Friday January 9, 2015. Boko overwhelmed both the ? local vigilantes and Nigeria’s armed forces near and into Baga…. blood flowed like a river….

    The other implications and points I wish to make are:

    First, Boko Haram has turned Jonathan’s Nigeria, with brazen impunity, into what I call Nigeria’s Federal Republic of Insecurity. Borno and nearby areas have become Boko violent playgrounds, the capital territory of their medieval Caliphate. We cannot have two Commanders-in-Chief in one country: Abubakar Shekau and President Jonathan. For President Jonathan, again, stand firm and Be Nigeria’s duly elected and only Commander-in-Chief; or…..

    Second, for having the will and courage to resist the repeated onslaught of the Boko Haram, Baga has been used, hideously, to teach other towns/villages around Borno and Yobe who refuse and resist going under the dark banner of Boko Haram and ISIS that Nigeria’s President Goodluck Jonathan and his armed forces remain incapable of protecting All Nigerians within its borders.

    Third, beyond the issue of the serial incapacities of the Nigerian armed forces to tackle and defeat Boko, I’m concerned like most Nigerians that the Boko massacres in Baga and Boko’s use of 10-year olds as bombs-explosives carriers into markets. Significantly, the killing of more than 2,000 human beings in one weekend has yet to draw any measurable international response or protests as we saw millions on January 11, 2015 in radical Islamists’ embattled Paris. The world came together, stood together against terrorism and for freedom of expression.

    Fourth, Nigerians and Nigeria’s government should lead the way! Or do they consider their own as Children of a Lesser God?? Nigeria should emulate the way the French forces and intelligence network moved decisively and killed the terrorists… without forming some committees or bogged down by sentiments.

    Fifth, as the year ?2015 opens, a recurring concern for Nigerians, Americans and the international communities remain: are we safe going about our every day lives or investing to do business in most parts of northeastern Nigeria? The honest answer is No! Daily, hourly, Nigerians say their quiet prayers in Maiduguri, Kano, Baga, Damaturu, Yobe, Jos etc asking for one of the following: may the evil eyes and bazooka of Boko Haram and kidnappers not see them! May the lethal bombs of the violent agitators of Boko Haram and political thugs others never set their gps in the same zone… Amen!

    Sixth, ahead of the February 2015 election and amidst all the palaver, Nigerians continue to wonder if their federal state of insecurity would continue?, despite the fact of a whopping federal government budget with the security? and defense allocation bagging since 2012, annually, the lion’s share of an average of N925 billion (Naira) — the equivalent of $6 billion. Those have not given Nigerians reasonable “security?” from kidnappers, common criminals, terror brigands, radical fundamentalists like the brazen Boko Haram and a rag-tag ethnic armies, area boys and area girls, and so on and so forth.

    Seventh, Nigerians, from all sections and faiths and economic status, have expressed their displeasure at the evident incapacity of the federal government led by President Jonathan and most state governors to perform the most basic function of providing security? and safe environments for the citizens. The unrelenting bombs and violent attacks and kidnapping in the middle belt Plateau State and in Maiduguri/Borno State, have combined to make life and movement much more dangerous for families, millions of unemployed? youths and investors in Africa’s most populated country of almost 110 million people.

    Eight, I believe and have made the political economy point that lawlessness and insecurity affect domestic production and international business worthiness of any country. The very bold attacks on the Nigerian Police headquarters and the United Nations building in Abuja (Nigeria’s federal capital) on Friday August 26, 2011 by the radical Islamic group Boko Haram left a weak profile of the President Jonathan and his team — in the eyes of the local and international communities. I wrote the USAfrica special report 14 years ago– on October 17, 2001 — warning that some radical Islamic groups in Nigeria have some level of inspiration and informal links to international terror organizations. Nigeria’s bin-Laden cheerleaders could ignite religious war, destabilize Africa. http://www.usafricaonline.com/chido.binladennigeria.html

    Finally, if any of the President’s 100 advisers has the polite courage for the extraordinary task of reminding His Excellency of his foremost, sworn, constitutional obligation to the national interest about security and safety of Nigerians and all who sojourn in Nigeria, please whisper clearly to Mr. President that I said, respectfully: Nigerians, at home and abroad, are still concerned and afraid for living in what I call Nigeria’s Federal Republic of Insecurity! Nigeria, we hail thee.

    •Dr. Chido Nwangwu is Founder & Publisher of USAfrica multimedia networks.

  • West African military force to fight Boko Haram coming

    West African military force to fight Boko Haram coming

    West African leaders are considering creating a military force to fight the terror sect, Boko Haram, President John Mahama of Ghana said yesterday.

    The issue is expected to feature prominently at a regional summit in Niamey,Niger Republic on Wednesday.

    “Nigeria is taking military action and Cameroon is fighting Boko Haram, but I think we are increasingly getting to the point where probably a regional or a multinational force is coming into consideration,” Mahama, who currently chairs the Economic Community of West African State (ECOWAS), told reporters.

    “It is what we want to discuss at the AU because, if that must happen, there must be a mandate to allow such a force to operate,” he said.

    ECOWAS will seek the support of the AU for its plans, said Mahama.

    The Ghanaian President spoke as France said it must help countries fighting terror, and 24 hours after the U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said he and British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond discussed a special initiative to deal with Boko Haram, but he did not elaborate.

    French President Francois Hollande said his country must give more help to countries fighting terror.

    Hollande took aim at Boko Haram, who he said were carrying out “crimes of humanity” in Nigeria.

    “France must give more help to countries fighting this scourge,” he told Paris-based ambassadors from around the world.

    “It’s not just women being kidnapped. That’s already atrocious enough. It’s children being massacred. It’s villages, whole towns being razed,” he said, in reference to recent Boko Haram attacks.

    He urged the international community to offer a “firm” and “collective” response in the wake of last week’s attacks in Paris that claimed 17 lives.

    He said: “Our response has to be firm in the face of terrorism. It can only be collective.

    “We are waging a war against it (terrorism), but not a war against a religion but a war against hate,” he said.

    “The attacks in Paris are an insult to Islam,” stressed the president, reiterating that “Muslims are the main victims of terrorism.”

    “The most lasting response is firm and unified action for peace and international security. Because unresolved conflicts are sources of inspiration for terrorists and areas of chaos are their training ground,” he told diplomats.

    And speaking in Sofia, Bulgaria on Thursday, Kerry said Boko Haram is “without question one of the most evil and threatening terrorist entities on the planet,” and that the killing in Northeastern Nigeria is a “crime against humanity” and must be addressed.

  • Boko Haram: UNHCR worried over return of refugees from Niger

    Boko Haram: UNHCR worried over return of refugees from Niger

    The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has expressed concern about the return of hundreds of Nigerian refugees from Niger.

    Speaking at the press briefing by the UN Information Service in Geneva on Friday, UNHCR  spokesman, Mr William Spindler said the refugees returned on January 14 in a joint operation organized by the Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima and the authorities in Niger.

    According to information received by UNHCR, the refugees were transported in nine buses to Maiduguri, the state capital while another eleven buses were currently parked in the town of Gagamari in Niger’s Diffa region, waiting to take more refugees back to Nigeria.

    Given the volatile security situation in Borno state and the recent attacks by Boko Haram insurgents, UNHCR said it was concerned about the nature of the returns and had asked the authorities to stop the operation until there were proper safeguards and a legal framework between Nigeria, Niger and UNHCR.

    Spindler said UNHCR was trying to ascertain the nature of the returns, and did not know whether they were voluntary or not.

    According to Spindler refugees fleeing the brutal conflict in north-east Nigeria continued to arrive in Niger and Chad telling harrowing tales of killings and destruction.

    UNHCR teams said that refugees told them about the extreme violence they suffered or witnessed during the attacks on the town of Baga on January 3 and 7.

    “A woman, who ran away from Baga with her five children and her husband, said she saw insurgents run over women and children with their cars, shoot at people and use knives to cut their throats in the street.

    “She estimated that hundreds had been killed in Baga.  The terrified family managed to escape at night before reaching Maiduguri, from where they took a bus to Niger.”

    In all, some 13,000 Nigerian refugees had arrived in western Chad since the attacks on Baga earlier this month.  UNHCR and the governmental commission Nationale d’Accueil, et de Réinsertion des Réfugiés et des Rapatriés (CNARR) had registered over 6,000 refugees so far.

    “Dozens of refugees continued to arrive every day, many by canoe over Lake Chad to areas such as Ngouboua and Bagasola, some 450 kilometres north-west of the Chadian capital N’djamena.  Including the latest influx, some 16,000 Nigerian refugees have arrived in Chad since May 2013.  UNHCR was concerned that refugees from Baga and the surrounding area were choosing to flee over the lake into Chad as that may indicate that the overland route into Niger was blocked by insurgents.

    UNHCR teams in Chad reported that they had identified 104 unaccompanied children, who had been separated from their families while fleeing the attacks in Baga.  They had been placed in foster families while waiting to be reunited with their own, said Mr. Spindler.

    Meanwhile UNHCR had started the relocation of some 2,000 refugees who were stranded on the Lake Chad’s islands of Koulfoua and Kangalam, to the newly opened site of Dar Es Salam, near Bagasola.  The site, which currently hosted some 1,600 refugees was located 70 kilometres from the border with Nigeria and would be able to accommodate up to 15,000 people.

    The attacks on Baga had also pushed some 572 people to flee to Niger’s Diffa region, with some of them having first crossed through Chad before reaching Niger, said Mr. Spindler.

    Since the state of emergency was declared in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states in May 2013, an estimated 153,000 people had fled to the neighbouring countries.  To date, UNHCR had registered over 37,000 Nigerian refugees in Cameroon, some 16,000 people had arrived in Chad, and the authorities in Niger estimated that more than 100,000 people, both Nigerian refugees and Niger nationals, had arrived from the war-torn north-east of Nigeria.  Already this year, the violence had led to an exodus of 19,000 people.
    Corinne Momal-Vanian, Director, United Nations Information Service in Geneva, chaired the briefing, which was also attended by Spokespersons for the Human Rights Council, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the United Nations Development Programme, the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, the United Nations Refugee Agency, and the World Food Programme.

  • Boko Haram: Africans must overcome distrust to succeed – UN

    The four African nations most threatened by the Boko Haram must put aside mutual distrust and agree on a command structure and strategy for a fledgling regional force if they want to defeat the militants, a top United Nations official has said.

    Mohamed Ibn Chambas, UN Special Representative for West Africa, said the international community could only help Nigeria and neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon once they clearly laid out the assets they lacked to fight Boko Haram.

    A month before presidential election in Nigeria, Boko Haram has seized swathes of new territory. It has killed hundreds of people in northern Nigeria, displaced several thousand more and seized the base of a regional military task force meant to fight it.

    The fall of Baga this month, where as many as 2,000 people are reported to have been killed, led to increased calls for international support to halt an insurgency that has spread from northern Nigeria to threaten parts of Niger, Cameroon and Chad.

    “It is clear now that the countries should not be left to tackle it individually. That has been the approach so far and it is not winning the fight,” Chambas told Reuters.

    He said it was up to the four states bordering Lake Chad to draw up better coordinated plans. He called for a clearer command structure and rules of engagement, amid resistance from some countries to see their troops deploy outside their borders under foreign command.

  • Boko Haram: Chad to send military contingent to Cameroon

    Boko Haram: Chad to send military contingent to Cameroon

    Chad will send a large number of troops to neighbouring Cameroon to help fight increasing incursions from Boko Haram sect attacking from Nigeria, the Central African nation’s president said on Thursday.

    The announcement by President Paul Biya did not specify how many troops Chad will send, but comes a day after the Chadian government said it will actively help Cameroon fight Boko Haram militants.

    Chad President Idriss Deby Itno “has decided to send a large contingent of Chadian armed forces to help the Cameroonian Armed Forces facing repeated attacks from the Boko Haram sect,” Reuters quoted Biya as saying in a statement posted on the Presidency’s website.

    Biya has called for international military help to fight the sect that has seized swathes of northern Nigeria and is threatening neighbours who share borders with the northeastern zones occupied by the group.

    Boko Haram, which aims to carve out an Islamist state in northern Nigeria, has stepped up attacks in the region as Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy, prepares for a crucial February 14 presidential election.

    The sect has also carried out a number of attacks and raids across the border in northern Cameroon, prompting the government to deploy thousands of troops including special forces.
    .