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Tag: boko haram

  • Hunters retake Maiha from Boko Haram

    Adamawa town Maiha has been retaken from the grip of Boko Haram by local hunters.

    Some members of the sect were killed by the hunters who battled and flushed the insurgents out of the town.

    The insurgents were forced to beat a retreat to Mubi. They were planning to install an Amir before the local hunters who forced them out.

     After they took Maiha, Governor Bala Ngilari ordered the immediate mobilisation of hunters and traditional medicine men to recover the town. The Governor also donated three Hilux vehicles to them.

     A resident of Maiha Mallam Sani Pella said before the attack on the insurgents by the local hunters, he saw about 10 truckloads of the vigilante groups and local hunters heading towards Maiha.

    One of the hunters told reporters in Yola, the Adamawa State capital that the capture of Mahia on Monday by the insurgents irked the local hunters who mobilised hunters in their neighbouring communities to team up against the insurgents.

    He said the hunters fought gallantly, killed 80 of the insurgents and recaptured Mahia. But the figure of those killed could not be independently confirmed.

    The hunters appealed to the military authorities to authorise them to face the Boko Haram insurgents in a battle which he believed the hunters will win.

  • Why US won’t help fight Boko Haram

    Nigeria’s Ambassador to the United States, Prof Ade Adefuye was quoted recently to have said that the United States refused to assist Nigeria with technology to fight Boko Haram. Specifically on Monday November 10, he told members of the Council on Foreign Relations that “The Nigerian leadership… are not satisfied with the scope, nature and content of the United States’ support for us in our struggle against terrorists,”. He added further that “We find it difficult to understand how and why in spite of the US presence in Nigeria with their sophisticated military technology, Boko Haram should be expanding and becoming more deadly”.

    Since the Boko Haram insurgency started, I am personally aware, through reliable military and diplomatic sources, that the United States had always availed Nigeria of list of those they suspect to be sponsors of Boko Haram. Immediately after the United Nations House bombing in Abuja on August 26, 2011, the US, alarmed by the sheer sophistication of the operations, reportedly availed the Nigerian authorities of the list of the sponsors of Boko Haram and were advised to act fast before they disintegrate Nigeria.

    This fact formed part of my published piece in 2012 titled PDP, Boko Haram and their 2015 Succession Politics.  Rather than the seize the opportunity of the uproar and outrage against the bombings to confront those indicted, the president chose to foot drag in taking actions until the 2011 Madallah Christmas Day Bombings which took over 80 lives. A traumatized President would admit two weeks later on January 8, 2012, for the first time, that Boko Haram sponsors had infiltrated his government.

    The military authorities, then under Generals Owoye Azazi as National Security Adviser (NSA) and Azubuike Ihejirika as Army Chief including other service chiefs pushed for the arrest of the sponsors of the group. However, political expediency and 2015 elections permutations would overshadow the earlier resolve of the military authorities to stamp out the insurgents. It was a frustrated Azazi that would later alert the nation at a public forum in Asaba, Delta State that the real sponsors of Boko Haram were in the PDP. Azazi was hounded for his frank observation until President Jonathan was forced to sack him as NSA.

    All these developments were not lost on the US military and defense analysts and advisers.

    The public outcry against the abduction of some 276 girls of Christian extraction from Chibok, by the terrorists, and the fear that if the conspiracy is misunderstood by Nigerian Christians, a religious conflict might ensue, coupled with other strategic reasons made the the US to volunteer help to rescue the Chibok girls and turn the tide against the insurgents. What US military officials met physically on the ground was enough for any sane nation not to commit its troops and weapons into operations likely to be sabotaged even before take-off.

    It was the US that first alerted the world that 10 Generals of the Nigerian Army were among 15 officers being secretly investigated for passing sensitive information to Boko Haram.  It was the US that officially verified information from local observers, villagers and hunters that Boko Haram had split the Chibok girls into three, taking them to different camps. It was the US that confirmed that due to probable high level sabotage, the only way to release the Chibok girls would be through high powered negotiations since any attempt to embark on a rescue operation would likely be sabotaged, endangering the lives of both the Chibok Girls and the US troops.

    The US military officials, after interacting with the rank and file and inspecting what is on ground in Borno’s 7th Division specifically created to contain the militants, alerted their home country of a deliberate attempt to issue the combatants with inadequate ammunition, thereby making them easy target for the insurgents.

    The US military officials discovered that funds meant for the welfare of troops while in the combat zone is being scammed from the top, and they fingered top political actors and their military collaborators.

    The US military officials discovered that in some cases where enough ammunition were issued, as in the case of Mohammed Kur Barracks, Bama, that some officers deliberately misled their troops to abandon their positions including caches of weapons only to be used by the insurgents.

    The fall of Bama, despite the heavy assemblage of arms, ammunition and the recently improved welfare of soldiers, have been a source of discussion within informed US military circles till date. The US authorities believe that with secured supply lines between Bama and the Divisional Headquarters in Maiduguri, a three hour journey through bad roads, and another support military base in Konduga, Nigerian soldiers have no business fleeing Bama.

    The US believes that the moment Boko Haram overran the prestigious Police Mobile Training facility in Gwoza, the Nigerian Police Force lost its pride to the insurgents, and gave them the boost to plot the fall of Bama and the ill-fated march to Maiduguri though Konduga, which was halted by soldiers and civilian JTF by the mercy of God.

    The US is still wondering at how weapons which belong to the Nigerian Army easily get into the hands of the insurgents and they are still investigating all the routes through which the Nigerian Army supposedly donated or sold the weapons to them.

    The heroic welcome the ruling PDP gave former Governor of Borno State, Ali Modu Sheriff, and how an airport closed for months over security concerns, was opened just for the use of the former governor, was a political misstep from Jonathan’s men which raised concerns within the US.

    The US tipped off South African authorities that fund for illegal purchase of arms is being carried through their shores, and they suspected that the arms might end in the hands of the insurgents. The South African authorities, bent on ridding Africa of this scourge, failed to cooperate with the unknown arms vendors and buyers.

    The US believes that any lethal weapon they give to the military authorities might end up in the

    hands of the insurgents, and that any deployment of American troops as combatants would be easily sabotaged, their soldiers captured and another dimension to the war on terror will be introduced.

    The US believes that if the Nigerian government handles high-level corruption, poverty, and unemployment, social unrest will reduce drastically and the insurgents may find the business of blood-letting unattractive.

    The Nigerian government knows why the US cannot commit sensitive men and materials to aid its fight against terror. Prof Adefuye’s vituperation, though patriotic, does not show sufficient understanding of the situation the US met on the ground. Blaming foreigners for letting Nigeria down in the fight against Boko Haram is sweeping sensitive puzzles under the carpet. The erudite professor should interact with the US military advisers and officials in Washington and around the US, and they will avail him of the rot they met on the ground and get more insight into why the US government refused to assist Nigeria with the needed technology to fight Boko Haram; that done, he will be able to apportion the blames more proportionately.

  • U.S support lacking in Boko Haram battle – Envoy

    U.S support lacking in Boko Haram battle – Envoy

    Nigeria’s envoy to Washington has described United States support in the battle against Boko Haram militants as insufficient, including failure to share enough intelligence and sell needed weaponry to fight the sect.

    Ambassador Ade Adefuye, in remarks posted on the Nigerian Embassy’s website on Tuesday, appealed for greater backing from Washington and rejected claims of human rights abuses that have limited some U.S military assistance.

    “Our people are not very happy with the content of America’s support in the struggle against Boko Harm,” Reuters quoted Adefuye as saying in an address.

    “There is no use giving us the type of support that enables us to deliver light jabs to the terrorists when what we need to give them is the killer punch.”

    Asked about the remarks, an official in the Barack Obama administration, said Washington remained committed to helping Nigeria address its extremist threat and supported its efforts free Boko Haram’s kidnap victims.

    President Goodluck Jonathan, who faces an election in February, has come under sharpening public criticism for his government’s apparent inability to check Boko Haram’s five-year insurgency, which has ravaged the poor northeast corner of Nigeria.

    His government’s announcement of a ceasefire last month failed to stop almost daily attacks, which this year have included the mid-April abduction by Boko Haram of more than 200 schoolgirls from Chibok, Borno State.

    “The people of Nigeria are increasingly frustrated by not only the failure to rescue the kidnapped schoolgirls but the failure to stop what has become an increasingly effective insurgent offensive,” said J. Peter Pham, director of the Africa Center at the Atlantic Council think tank.

  • Judge ‘unhappy’ with FG handling of Ndume’s trial

    Judge ‘unhappy’ with FG handling of Ndume’s trial

    Justice Gabriel Kolawole of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has expressed his displeasure at the unserious manner the Federal Government was going about the prosecution of Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume.

    The judge in a ruling on Tuesday, refrained from dismissing the case, but warned the prosecution not to take for granted, “the patience and magnanimity being shown by the court.”

    Ndume, a serving Senator from Borno State, is facing terrorism related charges before the court.

    He was arraigned before Justice Kolawole on December 12 last year, on a four-count charge by the Department of State Services (DSS).

    He was accused of sponsoring the Boko Haram sect and failing to provide information about the sect’s operations.

    The prosecution which had called about three witnesses in the trial was absent in court on Tuesday.

    The prosecution was expected to call more witnesses in continuation of its case. The development prompted lead defence lawyer, Rickey Tarfa (SAN), to apply that his client be discharged and the case dismissed on the ground that the state was unwilling to proceed with the case.

    Tarfa contended that if the accused person and his lawyer could make it to court despite the transportation crisis created by the blockage of most roads in Abuja over President Goodluck Jonathan’s campaign event, the prosecution, whose office was next to the court building has no excuse staying away.

  • Boko Haram: Over 100,000 voters may be disenfranchised

    Boko Haram: Over 100,000 voters may be disenfranchised

    No fewer than 100,000 eligible voters are yet to col-lect their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in Gujba and Gulani local  government areas of Yobe State.

    The distribution of cards has been suspended, following the invasion of the two councils by members of the Boko Haram sect.

    The Resident  Electoral Commissioner, Sadiq Abubakar, told reporters in Damaturu, the state capital, said the exercise was suspended because of insecurity.

    He said INEC officials will resume the distribution, when the security situation improves.

    Governor Ibrahim Gaidam however, asured that registered voters will get their cards. He spoke in Burkarti, Yunusari Local Government, after collecting his card.

    The governor said that eligible voters would not be disenfranchised, assuring that security measures would be put in place to ensure safety of life and property.

    He also promised that displaced people would not be excluded in the distribution.

    However, despite the governors’ assurance, there is no immediate solution. Boko Haram is still on the prowl. The two councils have not had peace. There are fears that the election may not take place there next year.

    Abubakar said his men’s life are exposed to danger. He added: “Until the security improves, I cannot direct my staff to go to that Boko Haram enclave in the name of distributing PVCs.

    “I am waiting for clearance from security agencies and I have not gotten any signal in that respect. Let me tell you that your concern is just like mine and the people of Gujba and Gulani too. If it is possible, we want this thing done. But, there is no short-cut to this issue at the moment.”

    The REC was not categorical on whether there will be an alternative plan for the distribution of the cards.

    A source disclosed that the commission is planning a secret distribution of the PVCs to the voters in Damaturu through some politicians from the area.

    The source said: “Since the majority of the people that ran out of Gujba  and Gulani are staying in Damaturu, the commission is looking at the possibility of holding a meeting with politicians from the areas on possible ways of distributing the PVCs to voters, if possible, even secretly.”

  • Potiskum likely insurgents’ base

    Potiskum likely insurgents’ base

    Barely few hours after the dastardly killing of 35 students, the military and security agencies yesterday traced the school bombing to suspected reprisals by Boko Haram insurgents.

    It was learnt that the insurgents were angry because of the crackdown on them by troops after the attacks on Shiite’s procession in Potiskum.

    The crackdown led to the killing of many insurgents which were not celebrated by troops.

    Also, the agencies are probing clues that the insurgents might have established many operational bases in and around Potiskum.

    The existence of these bases made Potiskum prone to incessant attacks by the insurgents.

    A top source said: “From preliminary findings, the school bombing was an attempt to retaliate by the insurgents having suffered setback after they attacked a Shiite procession in Potiskum.

    “The insurgents were angry that troops had killed many of them after the attack on Shiite procession. They were surely on reprisals.

    “The manner of the bombing is peculiar to them. The suicide bomber disguised as one of the students and wreaked the havoc.

    “And you know, security is always relaxed in a school environment. Early morning assembly by students is a routine thing in order to call the school to order.

    “It was difficult for the students to detect the suicide bomber.”

    The source also indicated that the recurring bombing in Potiskum showed that Boko Haram has many operational bases and cells in and around the commercial town.

    The source added: “The ease with which they come in and out of Potiskum suggested that they might have been operating discreet operational bases and cells in that axis.

    “We may need to engage in thorough combing and anti-bomb sweeping of the town and its environs.

    “This is one of the possibilities we are working on. We will surely rid the area of insurgents.”

     

  • Who will help us now?

    Who will help us now?

    Just as I was about putting pen to paper for this write up, news filtered in that Boko Haram insurgents have struck again, taking no fewer than 47 lives in an apparent suicide bomb attack on a group of students in Pokiskum, Yobe State. The suicide bomber dressed like a student and mixed freely with the unsuspecting genuine students before detonating his\her deadly arsenal.

    In the run up to this devastating attack, Boko Haram had been having a field day conquering, annexing and renaming towns and cities across the north east, with our military seemingly helpless to push them back.  All of a sudden Adamawa that had looked like relatively immune to the activities of the terrorists is now under threat of being annexed by Boko Haram.

    Don’t forget this is a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) controlled state and the Governor Ngilari has cried out that his state might fall to Boko Haram any time from now unless the Nigerian armed forces move fast to rout the terrorists. The state used to be controlled by the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) before the impeachment go Admiral Murtala Nyako as governor.

    Nyako, you’ll recall had, while still in office, cried out about the imminence of Boko Haram’s attack on his state, but Abuja did not listen. Instead he was branded a saboteur, crying wolf,  where there was none. Now that PDP’s Nigilari had spoken, may be Abuja will listen and do the needful.

    I don’t want to talk much about the phantom ceasefire other than to say that whoever conceived or concocted it must be smiling to his\her bank now because I know the Goodluck Jonathan administration would have pumped money into it thinking it would bring the girls back home.  Not necessarily because it genuinely wants the Chibok girls back home as soon as possible, but because bringing them back home now at whatever cost could enhance his falling electoral fortune.

    But more importantly, whoever it was within the Nigerian government or the military that trusted the Chadians or any of our Francophone neighbors to help us get rid of the insurgency must have a poor sense of history in terms of our past relationship with these hateful neigbhours of ours.

    During the struggle for power in Chad in the 70s and 80s, Nigeria and Moammer Ghadafi’s Libya were fighting a proxy war, so to speak, struggling to control the heart and mind of the government in N’Djamena.  Both parties backed different guerrilla leaders as Goukkoni Weddaye and Hussein Habre battled it out for the control of Chad.

    At a point during the second republic under President Shehu Shagari, Chadian forces backed by Libya invaded Nigeria’s north east, and it took a General Muhammadu Buhari’s led 3rd Division of the Nigerian Army to drive the Chadians out. Buhari was then the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the 3rd Division based in Jos, Plateau State. The defence  of that axis of Nigeria fell under his command. And he did well to defend Nigeria’s territorial integrity then. Please NOTE this.

    Chad must have a reason for that invasion then and who says she still doesn’t harbour an interest in annexing north eastern Nigeria? Don’t forget that Camerooun similarly and frequently attacked parts of Nigeria around Bakassi under Shagari’s watch. Today Bakassi is part of Cameroun. Who says that Chad is not enjoying the Boko Haram insurgency and even probably secretly encouraging it with the hope of adding the territory to Chad once Boko Haram succeeded in carving the region out of Nigeria. If Cameroun could get Bakassi why not Chad getting north eastern Nigeria? Don’t forget Cameroun is not done with us yet regarding her territorial ambition as the north east around Adamawa  is also being eyed by Yaounde.

    My argument here is, since we are surrounded by enemies so to speak, why do we expect them to help us, genuinely and wholeheartedly fight the enemies within? I mean, why should Cameroun and Chad help us to defeat Boko Haram?  Why should Chad be interested in that ‘ceasefire’ and ending the insurgency.  Until now, Cameroun was enjoying the insurgency here, so to speak until the terrorists started striking in her territory.

    Is it not about time that we put our destiny in our hands and enlist the help of genuine friends if we can’t defeat Boko Haram on our own?

    When the ISIS started in Syria, the west (US and western Europe) were  watching believing that helping Syria defeat the terrorists could on the long run result in helping despised President Assad stay in power. Now ISIS has expanded into Iraq and has carved out a territory of its own from parts of Syria and Iraq under its control. The Kurdist city of Kobani close to Turkey is under threat of falling to ISIS and Turkey, because of her hatred for the Kurds is folding her arms, burying her head in the sand like the proverbial ostrich, believing ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend’.  Now the Kurds are calling on their friends around the world to help defeat ISiS, and America, belatedly is responding.

    I do not know how worse the west want the situation in Nigeria to get before they would come to our aid in the fight against terror. It is very clear that President Goodluck Jonathan and the Nigerian armed forces are incapable of winning this war against Boko Haram, especially as long as countries like France continue to pay ransom to the terrorists for every of her nationale they abduct; the terrorists would be emboldened to continue. As long as some of our war commanders and their men continue to abandon the front and run away at the slightest sight of Boko Haram, the war will continue and the terrorist would have their way.

    After watching a documentary on the South African Defence Forces (SADF) my heart bled for Nigeria. Our military is nothing to write home about, and the blame should go largely to all the military governments  of the past, particularly, General Ibrahim Babangida’s which systematically decimated the Nigerian Armed Forces for selfish reasons.  This is not exonerating the civilian regimes as well, especially Goodluck Jonathan’s under whose watch Boko Haram has become so large and powerful that we now have to beg to graciously grant us peace. What a shame!

    It is not too late though to rearm, adequately equip and retrain the officers and men of our armed forces to successfully fight this insurgency. You don’t need years to do this. And at the same time, the best way to do is not the Pastor Oritshejafor’s way. I mean not secretly channelling or funneling money into foreign hands under the guise of procuring arms and ammunitions for our soldiers.

    Now that we seem to be in a helpless ( but not hopeless) situation, what do we do? It is not as if we can’t defeat the insurgency, but we need to be more focussed and serious and play less of politics in the whole of this unfortunate episode in the history of our country.

    The Nigerian Armed Forces as presently constituted is polarized along ethnic and religious lines and something must be done quickly to arrest the situation lest this national institution and avenue for national unity go the way of similar organisations that are today in the hands of ethnic jingoists.  We can consciously create an elite unit within our armed forces, like the US Navy SEAL, to deal with Boko Haram and similar problems. This doesn’t have to take years to accomplish if the political and military will is there on the part of our leaders.

    I don’t think it has gone so terribly bad for Nigeria that she cannot get help in this and similar regards from genuine friends out there. But these ‘friends’ want to see genuineness of purpose from us and willingness to see it through. If we are ready to do this, I am sure we will get help. When I said we, I mean everybody; the government and the governed; PDP and the opposition. Let’s fight Boko Haram together. It is in our collective interest.

     

     

  • 20 Students die in Potiskum Explosion

    An early Monday morning explosion that hit Potiskum in Yobe state, has reportedly claimed many lives.

    The explosion, which happened while students of the Science Secondary School were on assembly ground, was reported to have killed about 20 of the students, leaving many others injured.

    Meanwhile, as at the time of filing this report, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack. So too, the casualty figure is not available

    Details Soon…

  • Boko Haram shows grip of town in video

    Boko Haram shows grip of town in video

    Boko Haram yesterday affirmed its control of one of the towns in the Northeast through a 44-minute video.

    The video, obtained by French News Agency (AFP), showed militants on an armoured vehicle parading down a road in an unidentified town they apparently control and the group’s leader Abubakar Shekau preaching to locals.

    It was not possible to tell whether the footage was staged for propaganda purposes, especially scenes of residents cheering Islamist fighters.

    The sect controls 16 local government areas across three states – Yobe (two), Adamawa (16) and Borno (nine).

    Some of the towns in the hands of the sect are: Kukawa, Marte, Gajiganna, Gamboru-Ngala, Dikwa, Bama, Banki, Gwoza, Madagali, Liman Kara, Mubi, Gujba, Buni Yadi, Damboa, Gulani and Bumsa.

    It has renamed Mubi (Adamawa State) Medinatul Islam (City of Islam) and Gwoza (Borno State) Darul Hikma (House of Wisdom)

    The message appeared to be aimed at reinforcing Shekau’s claim that he has created a caliphate within Nigeria.

    In the video, Boko Haram voices support for other so-called caliphates, including the one proclaimed in Iraq and Syria by the Islamic State (IS) group.

    Shekau, who is pictured in close-up shots with rare clarity, again dismisses the government’s claims about ceasefire talks.

    The video, which was delivered through the same channels as past messages, shows armed men lined along a well-paved road, with three pick-up trucks bristling with heavy weapons also visible.

    Black, crested flags associated with the Islamist group are also shown.

    Later, an armoured vehicle rolls down the road lined with both fighters and individuals who appear to be residents of the town.

    Boko Haram has released a series of videos showing similar military hardware, equipment it says was stolen from the Nigerian military. Such claims have been impossible to verify.

    No women or girls are seen on the street or anywhere else in the footage.

    Most of the message is taken up by a sermon from Shekau, delivered indoors but apparently played on a speaker to locals assembled outside.

    “We have indeed established an Islamic caliphate,” he said, restating a claim he first made in August.

    The images of the sermon include unusually clear close-ups of the militant leader.

    Shekau has previously expressed solidarity with other jihadi groups and leaders.

    In the latest video, he seemed to associate territory under his control with a wider, global caliphate, but did not submit to the authority of any other jihadi leader.

    “To everyone living in Islamic Caliphate, we convey our greetings,” he said, specifically mentioning “brethren” in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Azerbaijan, Shishan (an Islamist term for Chechnya), Yemen, Somalia and “the Caliphate in Iraq and Syria.”

    A graphic shown later includes a picture the IS group’s leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as well as a portion of the message his group issued on July 1 proclaiming a caliphate in Iraq and Syria.

    Iraq yesterday was investigating whether Baghdadi was killed in air strikes by US-led coalition warplanes.

    Nigeria maintains it is still negotiating with Boko Haram envoys in neighbouring Chad and that a disputed October 17 ceasefire declaration remains viable.

    Violence has, however, continued and the Islamists are believed to control more than two dozen towns and villages in the Northeast.

    “There is no truce between me and Nigerian tyrants,” Shekau said, dismissing the credibility of Danladi Amhadu, the purported rebel negotiator.

    “This person Danladi… if he thinks he can, let him show his face. By Allah, we will kill him,” the Islamist leader said.

  • Army releases 125 Boko Haram suspects in Borno

    The Nigerian Army on Saturday released another 125 suspects arrested for alleged links with Boko Haram activities.
    The Nation reports that 42 persons were released on Thursday by the Army authorities after thorough investigation in Maiduguri.
    Spokesman of the 7 Division of the Nigerian Army, Maiduguri, Col. Sani Usman while handing over the new set of 125 persons to Governor Ibrahim Shettima informed that 254 persons were arrested while fleeing from the state after attack on Boko Haram strongholds on September 23 in Biu.
    After proper investigation, he said 125 men have been cleared of any involvement in terrorist activities.
    He however disclosed that those who have been investigated and found wanting would be prosecuted.
    “These cleared suspects being presented to you, were however cleared by the military after a thorough investigations by the military of any alleged involvement or participation in terrorists activities in the recent attacks and killings experienced in Southern Borno state,” Col. Usman said.
    Responding. Gov. Shettima said that the action of the military will build trust between the army and the civil populace.
    “It shows that the military are core professionals and know how to go about their duties. This will go a long way in building trust across the local people and the military,” Shettima said.
    He commended the military for taking good care of the freed suspect, saying, they look well treated and they do not show any sign of torture on them”.
    He advised those release to put behind any feeling of revenge, while calling on them to contribute their quota to nation building especially the return of peace to the nation.
    “Now that you have been absolved from any terror activity by the military, I call on each and every one of you here in this Government House Hall, to exhibit good behaviours in your respective towns and villages; and should also assist the military by giving useful information on how to end this insurgency that has been with us for over five years.

    “Islam does not condone the killings and destruction of people’s property. What is important is that all of you should go home and assist your parents, because most of you are youths that could transform this state into a better place to live in,” Shettima advised.