The Nation Newspaper

Tag: boko haram

  • ACF to FG: Review negotiation strategy with Boko Haram

    …condemns killings of aid workers

     

    Mouthpiece of Northern Nigeria, the Arewa Consultative Forum ( ACF ) has condemned the killing of another aid worker, Hauwa Amina Liman by Boko Haram terrorists on Monday.

    While describing the killing of Liman as clear desecration of Islam which preaches sacred inviolability of the individual, ACF said, the action of the terrorists to say the least was callous, barbaric and inhuman and totally against the tenets of Islam.

    The Forum therefore called on the Federal Government to review its negotiation strategy with the terrorists group, to ensure that the other aid worker, Leah Sharibu and the Chibok girls still in captivity are rescued and reunited with their families.

    In a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Muhammad Ibrahim Biu, ACF said Federal Government should no longer wait for deadline from the terrorists before taking necessary actions to rescue the captives, saying that, actions by the government and its allies on the rescue mission should be quick in order to assuage the fears of Nigerians of what may happen to those still in captivity.

    The statement read that, “Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) is saddened and pained by the sad news of the execution of another aid worker Hauwa Amina Liman by the Boko Haram terrorists on Monday.

    “It would be recalled that Hauwa and two other aid workers with International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) were abducted by the terrorists about six months ago during an attack on the military base in Rann, Borno State,and have since then been in their captivity.

    “Earlier on, one of the aid workers kidnapped named Saifura Hussaini Ahmed was killed by the terrorists on the grounds that the Federal Government (FG) failed to meet up some of their demands, the same fate befallen Hauwa.

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    “The action of the terrorists to say the least was callous, barbaric and inhuman and totally against the tenets of Islam. The killing is clear desecration of Islam which preaches sacred inviolability of the individual.

    “The Federal Government’s assurances that it has been working with some friendly countries and other international organizations to save the lives of the innocent aid workers has not yielded the desired result.

    “ACF therefore urges the FG to review its negotiation strategy and ensure that the other aid worker, Leah Sharibu and the Chibok girls still in the captivity of the Boko Haram are rescued and released to their families.

    “The FG should not wait for deadline from the terrorists before taking necessary actions to rescue them. Any actions by the FG and the allies on this issue should be quick in order to assuage the fears of Nigerians of what may happen to those still in captivity.

    “ACF extends its condolences to the families of Hauwa and Saifura who were brutally executed by the terrorists for serving humanity and equally commiserates with the families of those still captivity.” Said ACF.

  • We did everything possible to save killed Red Cross staff – FG

    …Expresses shock, sadness over the dastardly killing by Boko Haram

    The Federal Government has expressed shock and sadness over the killing of another aid worker by the Boko Haram despite all actions taken to avert the shedding of blood.

    The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, described the killing as dastardly, inhuman and ungodly.

    In a statement issued in London yesterday, the Minister of Information and Culture, described the killing as dastardly, inhuman and ungodly, saying nothing can justify the shedding of the
    blood of innocent people.

    He commiserated with the family of the aid worker, and said the Federal Government did all within its powers to save her life.

    ”It is very unfortunate that it has come to this. Before and after the deadline issued by her abductors, the Federal Government did everything any responsible government should do to save the aid worker.

    Read also: Air Force Strikes Boko Haram members in Borno

    ”As we have been doing since these young women were abducted, we kept the line of negotiations open all through. In all the negotiations, we acted in the best interest of the women and the country as a whole.

    ”We are deeply pained by this killing, just like we were by the recent killing of the first aid worker. However, we will keep the negotiations open and continue to work to free the innocent women who remain in the custody of their abductors,” the Minister said.

    He thanked all the friendly governments that have continued to work with Nigeria for the safe release of the abducted women, and the clerics across religious lines who have been pleading for their release.

     

  • Boko Haram : NAF decimates hideout in Bogum, Borno

    The Nigerian Air Force ( NAF ) says its Air Task Force (ATF) of Operation Lafiya Dole has decimated a Boko Haram Terrorist (BHT) hideout and neutralised several insurgents at Bogum in Northern Borno.

    Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, made this known in a statement on Monday.

    Daramola, who noted that the attack was carried out on Sunday, added that the action followed intelligence report that the insurgents had been carrying out activities within the settlement.

    He stated that “the ATF used two Mi-35 Helicopter Gunships to engage and destroy the identified BHT positions in the village.

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    “The task force focused on concentration areas of the insurgents and attacked in successive waves with direct hits on the targets, leading to the neutralisation of several BHTs.

    “The few surviving insurgents were tracked and mopped up in subsequent attacks.”

    The director added that NAF was working with surface forces and would sustain the tempo of operations with a view to destroying remnants of the terrorists on the fringes of Lake Chad and other areas in Northern Borno.

  • IS, Boko Haram threaten to kill health workers, Leah in 24 hours

    Boko Haram terrorists are threatening to kill hostage healthcare workers and Dapchi schoolgirl Leah Sharibu within 24 hours, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said yesterday.

    The international organisation is pleading for mercy and urging the government to intervene speedily.

    Medical workers Hauwa Mohammed Liman and Alice Loksha, working in Rann, Borno State, were kidnapped in March along with ICRC midwife Saifura Hussaini Ahmed Khorsa, who was killed in September.

    Fifteen-year old schoolgirl Sharibu was abducted in February along with her mates from her school in Dapchi, Yobe State. She was held back while others were released.

    Minister of Information and Culture Lai Mohammaed led a federal government delegation to visit the families of the abducted health workers and the schoolgirl at the weekend.

    He promised that they would soon be brought back home.

    But yesterday, the ICRC said: “Speed and urgency are critical. A deadline that could result in the killing of another healthcare worker is less than 24 hours away.”

    It did not give further details on the deadline or its conditions.

    There have been no reports of the militants making any demands in exchange for the release of their hostages.

    “We urge you: spare and release these women. They are a midwife, a nurse and a student. Like all those abducted, they are not part of any fight,” Patricia Danzi, director of ICRC operations in Africa, said in the statement.

    “They are daughters and sisters, one is a mother — women with their futures ahead of them, children to raise, and families to return to.”

    Liman was working as a midwife at an ICRC-supported hospital, while Loksha was nurse working with UNICEF.

    The Geneva-based ICRC, which often works behind the scenes for humanitarian goals in war zones, identified the kidnappers as members of ISWA – Islamic State’s off-shoot in West Africa, after previously declining to name the group.

    The organisation did not say how it knew about the 24-hour deadline.

    Islamic State in West Africa split from the Islamist insurgent group Boko Haram in 2016 and has killed hundreds of soldiers in attacks in northeastern Nigeria in the past few months, security and military sources have told Reuters.

    Like Boko Haram, ISWA wants to create a separate state in northeast Nigeria that adheres to a strict interpretation of Islamic law.

  • Boko Haram sect members “neutralised”

    The Nigerian Army said that six soldiers sustained injury while repelling Boko Haram insurgents in an ambush at Arege area of Borno on Friday.

    Brig.-Gen. Texas Chukwu, Army Director, Public Relations, announced this in a statement he issued in Maiduguri on Saturday.

    He said that scores of the insurgents were neutralized while others escaped with various degrees of injury during the encounter.

    Read Also: ‘Boko Haram: Ungodly, a crime against humanity’

    Chukwu said that one vehicle was recovered from the terrorists, while three gun trucks were destroyed by the troops of Sector 3, deployed in operation LAFIYA DOLE.

    “Unfortunately, six soldiers sustained various degrees of injury and are currently receiving medical attention at the military facility.

    “The public is once again reminded to report any suspicious movements or activities in their areas to the law enforcement agents for prompt action,’’ he announced.

    NAN

  • Air Force bombs Boko Haram training camp

    The Nigerian Air Force says its Air Task Force (ATF) of Operation Lafiya Dole has destroyed a Boko Haram Terrorist (BHT) Training Camp in Malkonory, and also destroyed a BHT vehicle near Tumbun Rego in Northern Borno.

    Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, who disclosed this in a statement on Thursday in Abuja, said the operation was carried on Oct.11.

    ” The attack on the Training Camp was undertaken Oct.11, on the heels of credible intelligence reports indicating that several structures, cleverly camouflaged under thick vegetation in the settlement, were being used to harbour and train BHT fighters,” he said.

    Daramola said that a NAF Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platform subsequently confirmed features such as training dummies and trenches along with a large number of adult males within the camp.

    ” Consequently, the ATF detailed NAF Alpha Jet aircraft to attack the camp in successive strikes resulting in the destruction of many of the structures, which were seen to be engulfed in flames, as well as the neutralisation of several BHTs,” he said.

    The NAF spokesman said that the few surviving BHTs were mopped-up in subsequent follow-on attacks.

    ” Similarly, following Intelligence reports indicating the presence of BHT vehicles on the move around Matari Village along the Metele-Kangarawa-Tumbun Rego axis on Oct.9.

    ” A NAF ISR platform was detailed to reconnoitre the area and subsequently spotted one of the BHT vehicles, a gun truck, along the road heading towards Tumbun Rego.

    ” Accordingly, an Alpha Jet aircraft was scrambled to attack the vehicle, with direct hits recorded on the target, leading to the destruction of the gun truck,” he said.

    The spokesman said that the NAF, working in concert with surface forces, would sustain the momentum of operations with a view to destroying remnants of the BHTs on the fringes of Lake Chad and other areas in Northern Borno.

  • Troops kill 5 Boko Haram insurgents in Borno

    The Nigerian Army on Sunday said its troops had killed five Boko Haram insurgents in northern part of Borno.

    Brig. Gen. Texas Chukwu, the Director, Army Public Relations, disclosed this in a statement issued in Maiduguri.

    Chukwu said: “troops of Sector 3, Operation LAFIYA DOLE in conjunction with Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF), while on fighting patrol to Gara village in northern Borno on Friday October 5, encountered  suspected Boko Haram Terrorists.

    “Five members of the Boko Haram terrorists were neutralised during the encounter, following the superior fire power of the troops, while others escaped to a nearby bush with gun shot wounds”.

    He disclosed that the troops recovered four AK 47 rifles; five magazines, 55 rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition and eight rounds of 5.56mm NATO ammunition.

    Other items recovered from the insurgents include: 11 mobile phones; assorted drugs; cooking utensils; consumables and six  horses.

    Chukwu called on members of the public to report any suspicious movements or activities in their area to the security agencies.

  • Military court martial: Two soldiers bag 10 yrs for abduction

    The on-going military court martial of soldiers of operation Lafiya Dole over violations of human right in the Theatre has sent two soldiers to ten years imprisonment.

    The President of the General Court Martial (GCM) 7 Division Nigeria of Army Brig. Gen. Olusegun Adesina while delivering judgement on Wednesday said the action of the soldiers was unlawful and against the ethics of the armed forces.

    The two soldiers were charged for abduction and forceful collection of money from innocent victims amounting to the sum of 1 million naria.

    Brig.Gen Adesina said the accuse were standing trial ” for 3 count charges include abduction of Alhaji Hassan on the 19th November, 2017 at his residents in Ruwan Shanfi area of Maiduguri to unknown location, forceful demand and reception of the sum of 1 million Naira after he was threatened as BHTs sponsor”.

    The soldiers confessed committing the offence.

    The soldiers further narrated that they “evaded the victim’s (Alhaji Hassan) house with a Honda 98 model and dragged the victim out and forcefully took him to Railway Area of Maiduguri, where he was threatened and tagged as Boko Haram sponsor and subsequently demanded N3m.

    “However, the victim begged and agreed to pay a million naira and then, he took the accused soldiers to his shop at Banban line district where he gave them N1m naira as promised”.

    In his judgment, Brig. Gen. Adesina said; ” having considered all pleadings by defense counsel, on 1st count charge, you Sergeant Aliyu Hassan and Corporal Nasiru Bello are hereby sentenced to 5 years in prison for abduction.

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    “On count 2 charges that your rank from Sergeant has reduced to Corporal and also your rank from Corporal to private for illegal behavior on uniform; third count charge for extortion of 1 million naira from victims, you are are hereby sentenced to 5 years in prison respectively and service of term shall runs concurrently.” Brig. Gen. Olusegun Adesina read.

    The affected soldiers are Sgt Aliyu Hassan and Corporal Nasiru Bello.

    The Nation checks revealed that the General Court Martial in Maiduguri has imprisoned a number of soldiers for different offences for more than one year now.

  • Christian leaders demand release of Leah Sharibu, Chibok girls

    A Christian civil society organization, Catalyst for Global Peace and Social Justice Initiative, CPJ, in conjunction with the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), has demanded for the release of Leah Sharibu, the Dapchi schoolgirl who, for over seven months, has remained in Boko Haram captivity along with the remaining 112 Chibok girls.

    The group made this plea at a prayer session held for Leah and the abducted girls which took place at the National Christian Center in Abuja on Tuesday.

    Read Also:Anglican primate to FG: Don’t forget other Chibok Girls, Leah Sharibu

    The group expressed its displeasure at the threat by the Boko Haram terrorists to kill Leah Sharibu and two others in their custody, non-release of the remaining Chibok girls, as well as the inability of security agencies to arrest the activities of kidnappers, ritualists, and insurgents.

    The Convener, CPJ Global, Pastor Abraham Aiyedogbon, condemned the abductions by Boko Haram, referring to it as “a show of gutless brutality by a group with a false claim to Islamic principles and endowed with criminal access to weapons of cruelty and mass murder.”

    He called on the federal government to use all its power to ensure the immediate release of Leah Sharibu before the threat deadline approaches to avoid the same situation that happened when Boko Haram murdered Suifura Khorsa, the Red Cross health worker.

    “It is bad enough that following the abduction of over 200 Chibok girls in 2014 during Jonathan’s administration, the Buhari administration would allow a recurrence of that incident with the February 2018 kidnapping of Dapchi girls,” he stated.

    “It is much worse that Leah was held back by her abductors on account of her heroic refusal to renounce her Christian faith when government negotiated the release of the Dapchi girls.

    “It is inexcusable that some eight months after her abduction, the Federal Government has not been able to secure Leah Sharibu’s release.”

    He also called on security agencies to bring kidnappers, ritualists, and terrorists to book, and adjured the FG to ensure that the 2019 elections remain credible, free, and fair.

    The General Overseer of the All Christians Fellowship Mission (ACFM), Rev. William Okoye, who represented the President of CAN, Olasupo Ayokunle, commended the initiative made by the groups to hasten the release of the girls and health workers in captivity and urged the federal government to harken to the cries of Christians.

    He made it clear that as long as the girls remain in captivity, the Independence Day celebrations and the 2019 elections are all in vain.

  • Air Force Jets destroys Boko Haram meeting venue

    …Kill scores of insurgents

     

    The Nigeria Air Force (NAF) said on Monday that Boko Haram meeting place at Jabullam in Borno state has been destroyed with air strikes.

    The Spokesman of the NAF, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola said in a statement that the strikes were conducted through the Air Task Force of Operation Lafiya Dole after an intelligence report had established the presence of the terrorists in the buildings.

    Air Commodore Daramola also said some terrorists were killed during the air strikes.

    The statement reads: “The Air Task Force (ATF) of Operation LAFIYA DOLE has destroyed a Boko Haram Terrorist (BHT) meeting venue at Jabullam in Northern Borno State.

    “The attack was carried out on September 28, 2018 following credible human intelligence reports indicating that some buildings within the settlement were being used for meetings attended by BHT leaders.

    “Accordingly, following confirmatory Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions which identified the target building and surrounding structures, the ATF detailed a Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Alpha Jet aircraft, which attacked the location and recorded direct hits on the target leading to the obliteration of the building and neutralization of the BHT occupants.”

    “The NAF, working in concert with surface forces, will sustain the momentum of operations with a view to destroying remnants of the terrorists in the fringes of Lake Chad and other areas in Northern Borno.”