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Tag: Nigerian Army

  • FG approves tertiary military hospital for Sokoto

    FG approves tertiary military hospital for Sokoto

    ‎Sokoto state Governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal on Tuesday commended the Nigerian Army for the  establishment of a tertiary military hospital in Sokoto.

    Accordingly, the hospital facility will serve as centre of excellence for diseases of military importance.

    A statement issued to reporters in Sokoto by Malam Imam Imam, spokesman to the Governor said the hospital, the first of its kind in the country, will also serve as a research institution with a United Nations’-grade international public health laboratory.

    The government according to the statement had provided space at the Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital for temporary use by the hospital pending completion of its permanent site.    

    The statement quoted Tambuwal as saying that some states have applied to be given the right to host the facility, but Sokoto emerged the preferred destination. 

    His words: “First of all, I want to inform the people of Sokoto state that our efforts in attracting important projects from within and outside the country has continued to yield positive results.

    “This hospital is of great importance not just to the military but to our people as a whole. Diseases of military importance are areas of concern globally because of the large population of people that can be infected after outbreaks.

    “Such diseases are subject of importance in efforts to counter bioterrorism and bio-weapons by aggressor nations. These infectious diseases include among others dengue fever, ebola, lassa fever, anthrax among others.

    “Having a centre in Sokoto dedicated to countering these likely outbreaks is a welcome development. We will support the hospital with facilities and logistics to properly take off until it is fully on its feet,” he added.

    The statement also dispelled the notion that the government has permanently handed over the Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital to the military.

    “We just sent a bill to the state House of Assembly to establish the Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital as property of the state government. Its position has not changed. The military will use the facility pending when all facilities for the newly-established Nigerian Army’s 8  Division, Sokoto, are fully ready,” the Governor added.

  • FG approves tertiary military hospital for Sokoto

    FG approves tertiary military hospital for Sokoto

    Sokoto state Governor, Aminu Waziri Tambuwal on Tuesday commended the Nigerian Army for the establishment of a tertiary military hospital in Sokoto.

    Accordingly, the hospital facility will serve as centre of excellence for diseases of military importance.

    A statement issued to reporters in Sokoto by Malam Imam Imam, spokesman to the Governor said the hospital, the first of its kind in the country, will also serve as a research institution with a United Nations’-grade international public health laboratory.

    The government according to the statement had provided space at the Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital for temporary use by the hospital pending completion of its permanent site.

    The statement quoted Tambuwal as saying that some states have applied to be given the right to host the facility, but Sokoto emerged the preferred destination.

    His words: “First of all, I want to inform the people of Sokoto state that our efforts in attracting important projects from within and outside the country has continued to yield positive results.

    “This hospital is of great importance not just to the military but to our people as a whole. Diseases of military importance are areas of concern globally because of the large population of people that can be infected after outbreaks.

    “Such diseases are subject of importance in efforts to counter bioterrorism and bio-weapons by aggressor nations. These infectious diseases include among others dengue fever, ebola, lassa fever, anthrax among others.

    “Having a centre in Sokoto dedicated to countering these likely outbreaks is a welcome development. We will support the hospital with facilities and logistics to properly take off until it is fully on its feet,” he added.

    The statement also dispelled the notion that the government has permanently handed over the Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital to the military.

    “We just sent a bill to the state House of Assembly to establish the Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital as property of the state government. Its position has not changed. The military will use the facility pending when all facilities for the newly-established Nigerian Army’s 8  Division, Sokoto, are fully ready,” the Governor added.

  • Troops avert major suicide attack in Borno

    Troops avert major suicide attack in Borno

    The Nigerian Army command in Maiduguri, Borno State, said on Wednesday that troops have averted a major suicide attack in Gamboru Ngala.

    The incident, according to the army, occurred on Tuesday.

    A statement signed by the Deputy Director of Public Relations, Theatre Command, Operation Lafiya Dole, Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, said the suicide bombers were well coordinated and tried to unleash havoc on the town but for the vigilance of troops who neutralized their devious plans.

    The army spokesman said two female bombers were killed by the troop, while one other was arrested.

    She confessed having two other accomplices.

    The statement reads:  “Troops of Operation Lafiya Dole deployed around Gamboru Ngala have successfully averted what would have been a major devastating suicide attack carried out by three female Boko Haram terrorists against innocent citizens in Gamboru town in Gamboru Ngala local government area of Borno State in the early hours of Tuesday.

    “Two of the suicide bombers, strapped with suicide vests had attempted infiltrating Gamboru town at 6:45 a.m.  when they were sighted by a joint patrol team of vigilant troops and Civilian JTF at Unguwar Yobe area shortly before entering the town.

    “They were halted by the patrol team from a safe distance and were ordered to unstrap their suicide vests, to which they vehemently declined. All efforts and entreaties by the patrol team to make the suicide bombers remove their IED vests failed as the duo adamantly approached the troops armed with their IED vests. They were immediately neutralised by the troops, while the Explosive Ordnance Disposal Team (EOD) safely unstrapped and detonated the suicide vests.

    “A third female suicide bomber was detected and intercepted within the same general area and  subsequently confessed to the joint patrol that she and the other two terrorists had been dispatched at 3:30 a.m. on Tuesday to unleash mayhem on Gamboru town. She also revealed the location she hid her suicide vest and led the troops to recover it. The recovered vests and the surviving suicide bomber have been taken into custody for further interrogations.”

     

     

  • Army warn against harbouring fleeing Boko Haram insurgents

    Army warn against harbouring fleeing Boko Haram insurgents

    The Nigerian Army on Wednesday warned against providing sanctuary to fleeing Boko Haram insurgents in the North-East.

    The army also called on the people to report suspicious persons in their communities to security agencies nearest to them.

    Brig.-Gen. Sani Kukasheka, the Director, Army Public Relations, gave the warning in a statement issued in Maiduguri.

    Kukasheka said intelligence reports indicated that the insurgents were taking refuge in dry wells and other hideouts to avoid the ongoing military offensive against them.

    Read also: Army urges vigilance against suicide bombers

    “This is to warn residents in the North-East not to harbour the remnants of Boko Haram terrorists who are trying to flee from their waterloo.

    “Credible intelligence revealed that several of the insurgents have resorted to taking refuge in dry wells and other hideouts in some communities along their escape routes from the Sambisa Forest in order to evade the sustained bombardments from air and ground troops of Operation Lafiya Dole.

    “Any unpatriotic and unscrupulous persons especially in the North Eastern states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe found providing safe sanctuaries or any assistance to the criminals will be treated as accomplices and given same treatment as  terrorists,” he said.

    The director appealed to the people to cooperate with the military by reporting any fleeing terrorists immediately to the nearest security agency or call the Nigerian Army Information Call Centre Number 193.

    NAN

  • Troops arrest 9 members of militia group in Benue

    Troops arrest 9 members of militia group in Benue

    Troops of 93 Battalion of the Nigerian Army stationed in Takum, Taraba, have arrested nine members of alleged  sponsored armed militia known as Civilian JTF at Arufu, a boundary town between Taraba and Benue.

    A top military source in Abuja,who confirmed the story to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said that at the time of arrest, five of them were armed with AK-45 rifles fully loaded.

    The source said that shortly after their apprehension, a reinforcement of CJTF came to prevent troops from transporting the suspects to the Battalion Headquarters.

    “However, when the soldiers stood their ground the armed militia’s reinforcement withdrew.

    “During the preliminary investigation the arrested  CJTF claimed that the weapons were issued to them by Benue State government through one Alhaji Aliyu Tashaku.

    “The suspects also confirmed that they were 60 in number in their own camp located at Gbeyi, Benue State.

    “However, further investigation revealed that they were more than 1,000 at the camp, while over 700 of them bear arms,” the source said.

    He said that the suspects claimed they were being paid a monthly stipend of N15,000 by the state government.

    According to him,  they also alleged the state is owing them close to five months salary.

    “They further revealed that they were trained by selected  ex-service men assembled from all over  Benue State,” the source added.

    However, in its reaction the state government denied the claim

    “We wish to state categorically that the Benue State Government under Governor Samuel Ortom has not recruited any militia group and armed them since the Governor assumed office,’’ Mr Terver Akase the Chief Press Secretary to Gov Samuel Ortom said on Tuesday in Makurdi.

    .Akase said in a statement that the governor was  widely recognized for his disarmament policy which brought the amnesty programme leading to the recovery of about 700 arms and ammunition with over 800 youths laying down their weapons to embrace the programme across the State.

    “It is also on record that the present administration inherited the State Civilian Joint Task Force from the previous government but later proscribed it. ‘’

    He said following the enactment of the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law in the state last year, the government set up Livestock Guards to help in implementation of the law.

    “The Livestock Guards are not armed personnel. Their job is to ensure compliance with the regulation of ranches establishment and prohibition of open grazing of animals in the State.

    “The Benue State Government believes in the use of conventional security agencies to protect the people. Even in the face of renewed killing of innocent people by herdsmen in Logo and Guma Local Government Areas, Governor Ortom did not let the people resort to self help. The Governor acted swiftly to get the approval of President Muhammadu Buhari for the deployment of more troops to troubled parts of the State,’’ Akase said. (NAN)

  • Army hands over rescued Chibok girl to Borno govt

    Army hands over rescued Chibok girl to Borno govt

    The Nigerian Army on Tuesday formally handed over the rescued Chibok school girl, Salomi Pogu, to the Borno State Government.

    The Theatre Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj.-Gen. Rogers Nicholas, presented two rescued girls, including Pogu, to the state Deputy Governor, Alhaji Usman Durkwa, in Maiduguri.

    Nicholas said Pogu was rescued on January 4, alongside one other girl, Jamila Adams, by troops of Operation Lafiya Dole at Pulka in Gwoza local government area of the state.

    He called for proper registration of the girls before handing them over to their parents and guardians.

    Read also: Troops rescue Chibok girl Solomi Pagu

    Receiving the girls, Durkwa lauded the military for their commitment to the rescue of the abducted girls.

    “We waited for long for the rescue of the girls. It is a welcome development that the theatre commander was able to rescue the girl within one week,” the deputy governor said.

    He expressed the hope that the remaining abducted girls would soon be rescued from the Boko Haram insurgents.

  • Benue Attack: Humanitarian crises overwhelm Guma LGA

    Benue Attack: Humanitarian crises overwhelm Guma LGA

    The Chairman, Guma Local Government Area, Mr Anthony Shawon, said the invasion of some villages in the council area has left a huge humanitarian and environmental crises that needed urgent intervention.

    Shawon said on Monday in Makurdi that the herders, who invaded Saav, Mbadyen and Uvir villages on January 1, had retreated to the forest of Dogon Yashi, stretching from Guma to Logo on the banks of river Benue, covering over 57km long.

    Shawon, who lamented the destruction of crops, farms and houses by the invaders, said survivors of the invasion had left their ancestral homes and were looking for shelter in nearby towns.

    He said the state government had approved the setting up of camps for the displaced persons but regretted that the few already established were overcrowded by the Internally Displaced Persons ( IDPs ).

    Read also: Support Open Grazing Prohibition law, Benue Reps beg Buhari

    “The camps at Guma and Gbajimba are overcrowded, but the Benue State Emergency Management Agency ( SEMA ) is already handling the situation because as a local government, the scale is beyond us.”

    He regretted that the invaders, who were hiding in the Dogon Yashi forest, were still attacking villages, burning down houses and destroying crops.

    Shawon said the attackers were still destroying crops kept in farms such as soya beans, yams, guinea corn and rice.

    “They are openly grazing on farms after which they set them on fire,” he alleged.

    The chairman, however, commended the men of the Nigerian Army for their quick intervention in quelling the crisis.

    He appealed to the army to enter into the forest and dislodge the herders there.

    He accused the Kabawa community in Guma of ferrying food to herdsmen in the forest in exchange for cattle.

    Shawon, however, disclosed that the Kabawa people who carried food to the herders had been arrested by the police in Abinsi.

    He, however, regretted that the herdsmen were still carrying out open grazing in spite of the anti open grazing law on an open stretch of land from Mbagwen to Lokobi in the Local Government Area.

    According to him, that place is still open for invasion as the herdsmen are still doing open grazing there.

    Meanwhile, Gov. Samuel Ortom has set aside Thursday, January 11 for the mass burial of the 71 victims of the invasion while Tuesday and Wednesday had been declared days of mourning.

    The flag will fly at half mast while government offices will close at 1 p.m.

    NAN

  • Troops hit Boko Haram hideouts, kill several insurgents

    Troops hit Boko Haram hideouts, kill several insurgents

    The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) and the Nigerian Army (NA) combined team of Operation Lafiya Dole have launched attacks at the Boko Haram terrorists and their structures at the general area of the Sambisa forests, killing several insurgents.

    The terrorists’ hideouts were also destroyed by the troops.

    According to the Director of Public Relations and Information of the NAF, Air Vice Marshal Olatokunbo Adesanya, the attacks were carried out with fighter jets and rocket launchers.

    AVM Adesanya said in a statement supported with a declassified video footage that the air strikes against the insurgents were carried out after series of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) have been established, indicating the presence of the insurgents in the area.

    The statement said: “The ongoing combined clearance operations by NAF and NA elements are aimed at preventing the full-scale resurgence of Boko Haram insurgency in the Sambisa general area.

    “On 3 January 2018, the Air Task Force of Operation Lafiya Dole and its Nigerian Army counterparts commenced combined clearance operations of discovered Boko Haram Terrorists (BHT) locations in the Sambisa general area.

    “On the first day of the combined clearance operations, the Air Task Force conducted intensive bombardments on selected BHT locations, preparatory to the commencement of the operation.

    “Previous Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions by Nigerian Air Force (NAF) platforms had revealed the presence of BHT in Njimia, in the Sambisa general area, from where the insurgents launched attacks on own surface forces.

    “Accordingly, NAF fighter aircraft were detailed to attack the location and each of the aircraft took turns to attack structures occupied by BHT elements in the settlement.

    “The air attacks set several BHT structures ablaze and destroyed them. On the same day, the Air Task Force conducted air interdiction on another BHT hideout near Camp Zairo.

    “Previous ISR on the location had indicated the resurgence of BHT activities in the location, which had been previously liberated. Accordingly, structures occupied by BHT elements in the location were attacked, in succession, by NAF fighter aircraft.

    “The air strikes caused the destruction of more BHT structures and the neutralization of several insurgents. Some insurgents were sighted fleeing the area and they were taken out in subsequent follow-up attacks.

    “Later in the evening of the same day, the Air Task Force scrambled two fighter aircraft and one helicopter to support own surface forces that had come under BHT attack at Tokombere, 12km southwest of Camp Zairo.

    “The NAF aircraft supported the troops in repelling the attack, causing the insurgents to withdraw to the northeast of Tokombere. Consequently, at about 11:00 p.m., the Air Task Force detailed another helicopter to conduct air interdiction on the insurgents’ new location.

    “The Battle Damage Assessment from a NAF ISR platform indicated that the helicopter successfully dropped its weapons on the insurgents’ position, killing many and causing some survivors to flee.

    “Therefore, the ISR platform tracked the fleeing insurgents to another location and later coordinated the NA artillery bombardment of the insurgents’ new location. Several rockets were launched from the NA’s Multi-Barrel Rocket Launcher, most of which landed on the insurgents, killing some of them and causing a few survivors to flee in disarray.

    “The ongoing combined clearance operations by NAF and NA elements are aimed at preventing the full-scale resurgence of BHT in the Sambisa general area.”

     

  • 1,050 Boko Haram insurgents surrender to army

    1,050 Boko Haram insurgents surrender to army

    The Nigerian Army said on Saturday that 1,050 insurgents have surrendered to troops in Lake Chad and Monguno general area of operations.

    The army also said many of the insurgents were on the run.

    It urged abutting communities to watch out for the fleeing Boko Haram insurgents as their enclaves in Lake Chad region came under intense onslaught.

    The Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, Operation Lafiya Dole, Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, stated these in a statement in Maiduguri, Borno State.

    Nwachukwu said 250 fighters of the Al Barnawi-led faction of the insurgents had surrendered to the army, sequel to artillery and aerial bombardments by troops of Operation Lafiya Dole of their enclaves in Lake Chad basin.

    He added that 700 insurgents also surrendered to troops at Monguno in an ongoing clearance operation.

    Nwachukwu said Mamman Nur, another factional leader of the insurgents sustained fatal injuries and one of his wives killed in the operation, while many of the insurgents who escaped, surrendered to Niger Defence Forces.

    The army spokesman noted that some of the insurgents fleeing from the ongoing offensive were senior and junior commanders of the Al Barnawi faction.

    He said: “The insurgents are attempting to melt into communities in and around Kano, Geidam and Gashua axis unnoticed. One of such fleeing commanders is Bana Bafui.

    “Members of the general public, particularly in Kano, Geidam, Gashua, Hadejia and northern part of Jigawa State are therefore enjoined to be vigilant, watch out for strange faces in their communities and report same to security agencies.”

    Nwachukwu urged the insurgents to surrender, adding that the Federal Government had provided a window through the Operation Safe Corridor to encourage the insurgents’ voluntary surrender.

    He revealed that about 300 insurgents were currently undergoing de-radicalisation process for possible integration into the society.

    “We call on Boko Haram insurgents to abandon the futile struggle; take advantage of the Safe Corridor programme and surrender to troops in any location nearest to them.

    “We guarantee their safety and incorporation into the programme for de-radicalisation and rehabilitation,” the army spokesman added.

    NAN

  • Family of rescued Chibok girl lauds army

    Family of rescued Chibok girl lauds army

    Mr Ayuba Aloson, a relative to one of the abducted Chibok girls on Friday lauded the Nigerian Army’s effort over the rescue of Salomi Pogu, the 15th in the list of the abducted girls.

    Reports say that troops of Operation Lafiya Dole on Thursday rescued Pogu in company of one other girl, Jamila Adams, at Pulka in Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno.

    The 219 girls were abducted by Boko Haram insurgents at Government Secondary School, Chibok in 2014.

    Aloson, who is among thousands of displaced persons taking shelter in Maiduguri host community, commended the military over their commitment to rescue the abducted girls.

    He expressed joy over the development, and hoped that the remaining abducted girls would soon be rescued from captivity.

    Alonson said that he is a family member of the rescued girl, adding that four of his nieces abducted in the school were still held by the insurgents.

    Read also: Troops rescue Chibok girl Solomi Pogu

    “I am happy over the development; our abducted daughters are still with their captors.

    “This demonstrates the commitments of the military to the rescue of the girls,” he said.

    Meanwhile, the Bring Back Our Girls movement had also lauded the efforts of the military in the rescue of Pogu.

    The spokesman of the group, Sesugh Akume, said in a statement issued in Maiduguri that the rescued girl was serial number 15, in the list of abducted 219 school girls.

    “Our movement is delighted to confirm this news to be true.

    “Salomi Pogu; is a daughter of Malam Pogu Yahi from Kaumutahyahi, a village in Kuburmbula ward of Chibok Local Government Area. Her parents are currently at an Internally Displaced Persons ( IDPs ) camp in Rumirgo village, near Askira-Uba in Borno.

    “She is number 15 on the list of missing Chibok girls. This brings the number of our missing girls to 112”.

    Akume said that the group was yet to ascertain further details on Jamila Adams and her baby.

    Pogu’s rescue brought the number of girls that were freed from insurgents’ captivity to 107.

    NAN