The Nation Newspaper

Tag: JTF

  • Boko Haram: JTF, police in house-to-house search

    Boko Haram: JTF, police in house-to-house search

    SOME suspected gunmen were yesterday arrested in Kano State by a combined team of the Joint Task Force (JTF) and the police.

    The team launched a house-to-house search for explosives and weapons, following recent killings and rampant gun attacks in Yankaba and Dakata areas of the city by suspected Boko Haram sect members.

    Their efforts paid off with the arrest of suspects in the wee-hour raid on Hotoro, Mariri and Zango communities – all identified black spots.

    According to an eyewitness account, several gun shots were heard in the neighborhood as early as 5am.

    One person was reportedly killed in the crossfire between security operatives and the suspects.

    Kano Police Command spokesman Magaji Majiya, who confirmed the incident, identified the lone victim as a tricycle operator.

    He said the driver was shot by gunmen on the rail track crossing in Dakata/Yankaba. Majiya informed that the victim’s tricycle was taken away.

    The spokesman also confirmed that security operatives have spread their dragnets in the area in search of fleeing gunmen.

    It was learnt that the JTF began the house-to-house search in suspected flash points like Hotoro, Mariri, Hausawa. The areas are believed to be harbouring suspected Boko Haram militants.

    Dakata/Kawaji area has been under Islamic extremists’ siege, a development that has claimed several lives and ruined businesses.

    About 900 National Youths Service Corps (NYSC) members out of the 2413 deployed to Kano State for orientation have been redeployed to other parts of the country. Their redeployment followed the March 18 bomb blast that rocked the New Road Motor Park, in Sabongari Area of the city, which claimed more than 20 lives.

    But Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso assured the corps members of adequate security, urging them to respect the norms and culture of their hosts.

    Speaking with reporters shortly after the passing out parade of “Batch A, at Karaye Camp, the state coordinator, Alhaji Bashir Yakasai, said prior to the explosion, very few corps members indicated interests to be redeployed after the orientation programme.

    However, soon after the bomb blast, many corps members irequested to be redeployed and their request was granted, he said.

    Yakassai said: “Despite the Director General’s intervention, the corps members insisted on their redeployment. There was a directive that corps members should be redeployed to four key areas of agriculture, rural infrastructure, education and health.”

    He urged corps members to utilise the skills acquired during their orientation, so as to achieve self reliance.

  • JTF kills four gunmen in Sokoto

    JTF kills four gunmen in Sokoto

    Four gunmen including a woman were killed on Wednesday in Sokoto after a raid at their hide out by a joint military and police team.

    Briefing journalists on the incident, the Commander, 1 Brigade, Nigerian Army, Sokoto, Brig.-Gen. Mohammed Tasi”u, said several arrests were also made.

    He said the security operatives raided the hide out of the suspects located along Line `A”, Alu Estate in Bado area of Sokoto.

    According to him, several arms and ammunitions, cash, 10 handsets, a laptop computer and two vehicles were recovered.

    Tasi’u who declined to entertain questions from journalists said the house had been demolished.

    The News Agency of Nigeria learnt that the gunmen had engaged the security operatives in a gun battle from about 12 midnight to 9am.

    The Commissioner of Police in the state, Alhaji Shua’ibu Gambo, had earlier confirmed the incidence, saying that the raid followed a tip off.

     

  • Jonathan gives conditions for withdrawal of soldiers in Borno

    Jonathan gives conditions for withdrawal of soldiers in Borno

    … Wants firm commitment from Borno elders on peace

    President Goodluck Jonathan on Friday told the elders of Borno State that the choice of getting the soldiers off the streets of Maiduguri is entirely theirs as he was willing to withdraw them immediately.

    However, to achieve this, the elders will enter a commitment with the Federal Government that they should be held accountable for any killing in the state.

    Responding to requests for the withdrawal of the Joint Task Force from the state , at a Town Hall meeting in Maiduguri, on Friday, the president said he was dissatisfied with the appeal of the people without due consideration to the security situation in the state.

    He said, “I am not impressed with the way some spoke especially on the issue of bunkers. Who made this? No one would be interested in building this and bringing soldiers to Maiduguri.”

    The president asked that: “Do you think the federal government is comfortable paying the allowances of soldiers that were deployed here?”

    “From what I gathered from the governor of Yobe during my visit, the problem is coming down. It is coming down in Adamawa, in Gombe, in Bauchi and in Niger. But in Borno we still have some problems so if you elders will not condemn it you will continue to suffer under the terror of Boko Haram because without peace we cannot develop Borno.”

    The stakeholders at the meeting had asked for amnesty for the sect, withdrawal of soldiers and institution of Marshall plan, among others.

     

  • JTF denies complicity in Niger Delta oil theft

    The Joint Task Force in the Niger Delta on Friday denied complicity over oil theft as Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) said the menace was threatening its operations.

    The SPDC had threatened to shut its Nembe Trunk line because of rising incidents of oil theft within its pipeline network in Bayelsa.

    The Managing Director of SPDC, Mr. Mutiu Sumonu, on March 4, urged the JTF to step up its activities to reduce oil theft, currently standing at about 60,000 barrels daily.

    The JTF spokesman, Lt.-Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, however, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Yenagoa that the outfit was recording significant success in the fight against the illegal activities.

    According to him, the facts at our disposal are that from January 2013 to date, 260 suspects, eight vessels, nine barges and 90 boats have been arrested.

    “We have also destroyed 452 illegal oil refining points. The JTF has not in any way relented in its task of combating oil theft in the region.

    “The statistics peddled by SPDC is very doubtful, they should look inwards as their staff possessed the expertise to crack and clamp and not the JTF,” Nwachukwu said.

    Nwachukwu said the JTF had adopted a robust strategy in combating oil theft and illegal oil bunkering activities at various stages.

    According to him, this include advocacy, enlightenment campaigns, surveillance of oil installations and pipeline network.

    “Crude oil theft involved a complex network from the source, where crude is stolen, transported, refined and distributed.

    “We recently raided a distribution centre in Yenagoa and destroyed the warehouse, where the products are stored.

    “It is a continuous exercise aimed at making crude theft cost-ineffective, thereby, discouraging it,” he said.

     

  • Confusion over French hostages’ release

    Confusion over French hostages’ release

    …They were not released in Nigeria – JTF

    … No official confirmation that they had been freed – French minister

    Reports that seven French hostages kidnapped in Cameroon were found alive and safe in a house in northern Nigeria on Thursday are false, a Nigerian military spokesman has said.

    “It’s not true,” said Sagir Musa, spokesman for the Joint Task Force in Borno State, where the hostages were reported to have been released.

    Reports quoting French and Cameroonian officials had earlier said the hostages were rescued and  freed in Nigeria.

    “They were found abandoned in a house in Dikwa” in Nigeria, about 100km [60 miles] from the border with Niger, a senior Cameroonian officer told AFP.

    “They are in the hands of the Nigerian authorities,” the officer added.

    Reuters reports that France’s minister for veterans’ affairs told parliament the four children and three adults abducted on Tuesday had been released.

    Few minutes later he said there was no official confirmation that they had been freed.

     

     

  • JTF frees seized vessel

    The Joint Military Task Force on Thursday released a vessel it held on suspicion of illegal oil bunkering in Rivers State to the owner, Mr. Olumuyiwa Samuel Simeon.

    The release was incompliance with last November directives of a Federal High Court in Port Harcourt which ruled in favour Simeon.

    The 500 metric tons cargo vessel MV Pecos Peters owned by Hightide Marine Limited was arrested by JTF along Bonny water ways last October on the suspicion that it was involved in illegal oil bunkering along the coastal area.

    Although no evidence was said to be found in the vessel, two crew members were arrested and charged to court.

    The court discharged and acquitted the vessel and its crew members in November last year and ordered the immediate release of the vessel to the owners.

    The legal officer of the company Mr. Richard Oyiwuna hailed the court judgment, describing it as victory well deserved.

    Addressing journalists shortly after a brief handover ceremony at Bonny Island on Thursday, the media officer JTF operations (Pullo Shield), Yenegoa, Bayelsa State, FLt. Lt. Chris Erondu, confirmed the innocence of the crewmen of the allegations.

    He gave insight on the arrest, the judgment and the subsequent release of the ship.

    “This vessel MV Pecos Peters was arrested along Bonny waterways on October 17, 2012, by personnel of joint task force, operation Pullo Shield from 146 Battalion Nigerian Army on suspicion of involvement in illegal oil bunkering.

    “Consequently the vessel and its owners were arraigned before the court of law and after thorough investigation and procedure, the owners of the vessel were not found wanting as regards involvement in illegal oil bunkering,” the task force spokesman said.

  • JTF Destroys 362 Illegal refineries

    … Seizes vessels, barges

    The Military Joint Task Force in the Niger Delta has destroyed 362 illegal local crude oil refineries during its patrol of the region.

    The Media Coordinator of the JTF, Lt.-Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, told the News Agency of Nigeria about the find on Saturday in Yenagoa.

    He said the illegal refineries were in Kolokolo area of Bisigbo in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State and Igbomotoro and Sangana communities in Bayelsa State.

    Nwachukwu said further that the JTF seized three vessels and seven barges reportedly used in crude oil theft.

    According to him, the seizure of the vessels and barges took place on the Opobo River, in Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State and Tomkiri in Brass Local Government of Bayelsa State.

    “The operation as well led to the scuttling of 75 wooden boats (Cotonou boats) conveying illegal petroleum products at Ogbokodo creek and Ugbokolo areas of Warri South West of Delta State.

    “175 suspects were arrested in the operation and handed over to prosecuting agencies,” Nwachukwu said.

    He stated that the new JTF Commander, Maj.-Gen. Bata Debiro’s counter strategy to stamp out oil bunkering in the Niger Delta was yielding positive results.

     

  • Okah’s conviction: JTF places troops on alert

    Okah’s conviction: JTF places troops on alert

    The Joint Task Force in the Niger Delta was put on alert on Monday following the conviction of a former leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, Henry Okah by a South African court for terrorism.

    A Johannesburg High Court convicted Okah for the October 1, 2010, Independence Anniversary bombing in Abuja, which claimed 10 lives.

    Judge Neels Claassen convicted him on 13 -count charge ranging from conspiracy to commit terrorism to detonating explosives.

    Okah’s conviction caused panic following initial threats by his loyalists and faction of MEND to unleash mayhem, particularly on South African business interests in the region, because of his trial.

    The convict made headlines during the Niger Delta crisis acting as spokesperson of the deadly MEND under the pseudonym of Jomo Gbomo.

    Insider sources said he was also a major supplier of arms to the various groups in the region.

    JTF’s spokesman, Lt. Colonel Onyeama Nwachukwu, who was contacted on his fate on Monday and the threat to peace said, “We are not unmindful of the fact that some of his boys may want to try something, but we are ever on alert for this kind of situation.”

    Lt. Col. Nwachukwu assured that the taskforce would not be caught napping if “anybody tries anything.”

    He advised those who feel aggrieved by Okah’s fate to be “sensible with their actions”, hinting that any threat to the peace and security in the region would attract the full weight of the task force’s swift and decisive action.

    The JTF image-maker noted that no genuine former activist would take up arms on behalf of Okah, noting that the Federal Government has shown its sincerity to the development of the region through the amnesty programme.

    Meanwhile, leader of the Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force, Mujahid Dokubor-Asari, waved off threat of possible backlash over Okah’s conviction, stressing that he got what he deserved.

     

  • Attack on Emir: JTF debunks suspects’ arrest

    Attack on Emir: JTF debunks suspects’ arrest

    Contrary to reports credited to Kano State Deputy Governor, Engr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje that some suspects have been arrested in connection with last Saturday’s gun attack on the convoy of the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Ado Bayero, the Joint Task Force in the state said on Monday that no arrest has been made so far.

    Ganduje was quoted in the media as saying that some arrest were made in connection with the attack in which three people – the Emir’s palace guard, his driver and an Interim Management Officer of Kumbotso Local Government Area were killed.

    The Spokesman of 3 Brigade Kano and media coordinator of JTF, Captain Ikedichi Iweha, told our correspondent that he was not aware of any arrest in that regard.

    He said, “As I speak to you, no arrest has been made. If there were arrest, we would have informed you immediately.”

    Iweha, however, disclosed that the issue was under serious investigation, as the search for clues that will lead them to possible arrest was still on.

    Also speaking to The Nation on the issue, the State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris, said the command is investigating the attack and will communicate to the press when investigation is concluded.

     

  • Suspected Boko Haram commander arrested in Maiduguri

    Suspected Boko Haram commander arrested in Maiduguri

    The Joint Task Force on “Operation Restore Order’’ said it has arrested Mohammed Zangina, a suspected commander of the Boko Haram sect in Maiduguri, Borno State.

    JTF spokesman, Lt.-Col. Sagir Musa, said this in a statement on Sunday in Maiduguri.

    Musa said Zangina was arrested after an operation at the Government Reservation Area in Maiduguri.

    “The JTF has arrested a high-profile Boko Haram commander and `Shura’ Committee member at about 12:30 a.m. on Sunday. He was arrested in GRA, Maiduguri,” the News Agency of Nigeria quoted Musa as saying in the statement.

    Musa stated that Zangina was in Maiduguri to plan suicide attacks before he was captured.

    “He came to Maiduguri to plan several deadly attacks against civilians and security personnel.

    “Zangina, a.k.a Malam Abdullahi, is often referred to as Alhaji Musa. He is the leader of Boko Haram in the north-central part of the country; he is the coordinator of most of the suicide attacks and bombings in Abuja, Kaduna, Kano, Jos and Potiskum.

    “He is a key member of the `Shura’ Committee of the Boko Haram terrorists and he is among those declared wanted. A bounty of N25 million was placed on him by the JTF in November 2012,” he added.

    According to the JTF spokesman, Zangina had survived numerous attempts to capture him before he was eventually arrested in Maiduguri.