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Cameroon Kills 180 Boko Haram Terrorists; Niger Too Kills Others; Shettima Commends Civilian JTF

Oct. 10, 2013

A fierce gunfight launched  against the fundamentalist Islamist group, Boko Haram, by Camerounian soldiers has led to  the killing   of no fewer than 180 insurgents and two gendarmes  around a Nigerian  border with Cameroun.

It was gathered that during the battle which took place on Tuesday evening, many of  the wounded insurgents   were also arrested.

About 200 rifles, 70 machine guns and heavy military hardware were said to have been  recovered from the insurgents by the soldiers.

A reliable military source confirmed the development  to our correspondent shortly after the the Nigerian Army in Kano State disclosed that it  had foiled a plot to bomb Kano during the forthcoming  Sallah festival  by uncovering  a bomb factory in Gezawa Local Government Area.

It was gathered that the Camerounian authorities directed  the soldiers to launch the  attack against the Nigerian   gunmen, who had earlier on Tuesday,  ambushed and killed two gendarmes on patrol in  the border community.

Our source said the  soldiers, while  pursuing   the insurgents, sent a signal to   their Nigerian counterparts,   to be on the alert to avoid  the escape of the fleeing insurgents.

According to the source, the  number of those killed,  the arrests and  the  recovered arms   indicated that many  Boko Haram  members, who were forced out of Nigeria through military operations, had already “settled comfortably”  in Cameroun.

He said, “The Camerounian troops have been involved in a serious confrontation with the insurgents. They have killed over 180 of them.

“Almost 200 rifles and 70 machine guns were recovered from them by Camerounian  soldiers.

“What led to this operation was that the insurgents killed two  gendarmes on patrol around the border with Nigeria on Tuesday. I think this angered them to order a comprehensive raid of the hideouts of the insurgents.

“You can see from the casualty figure and the level of seizures that they were already comfortable in that part of Cameroun until this incident.

“Ironically, the Camerounians who had  been reluctant in spite of complaints by Nigeria at the diplomatic level are the ones now  reaching out to us to ensure that the fleeing insurgents are not allowed to escape. So, I can tell you that the heat is on them.”

It was also gathered that  Nigerien soldiers  in  the Multinational Joint Task Force  killed an unspecified number of  Boko Haram members on  some island communities  near Lake Chad on Sunday.

Investigations   revealed that the Nigerien component of the MNJTF  went after  the insurgents on learning of the killing of one of them.

Our  source said  the intensified military action against the insurgents had made the nation’s northern border rather too  hot for them.

When our correspondent contacted the Director of Defence Information, Brig.-Gen Chris Olukolade, he said,  “Our neighbouring countries, either through the instrumentality of the Multi National Joint Task Force or through their security instruments,  are involved in operations to complement what we are doing against terrorism.

“I am aware that the MNJTF and  Nigerian security agencies   are combing everywhere for any strange movement in our  territory,”  Olukolade said.

Also in Abuja on Wednesday,  the Commander ‘3’  Brigade of the Nigerian Army,  Brig. Gen Illiyasu Abba, said that  operatives raided a house in  Gunduwawa,  Gezawa LGA and discovered a bomb factory.

He  told journalists at a press briefing in Kano  that  bomb making items recovered from the factory were meant to carry out attacks in Kano during the  Sallah and other festivals this year. Read more on Punch

Borno Governor Shettima Commends Civilian JTF

The state governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, gave the commendation on Wednesday, saying the youths denied themselves of sleep to allow residents of the state sleep peacefully at night.

Shettima  said many of the youths have paid the supreme price with  their lives while battling the Boko Haram insurgents  and making the streets of Maiduguri safe and secure.

Shettima stated this while speaking at the passing out parade of 768 youth trained under the Borno State Youth Empowerment Scheme (BOYES).The governor  said the state will forever remain indebted to the youths for working tirelessly for the restoration of peace to the state.

”Sometimes if I remember the level of sacrifices our youth have made in protection of Borno people, including some of them surrendering their lives or denying themselves sleep and night rest, I just wonder if the state or government can ever do enough to compensate them for their patriotism.

“We built our administration around job creation, such that every programme or project we undertake have a key motive, in the agricultural sector alone, we have created over 20 thousand jobs in Marte,”the governor said, adding “only Almighty Allah in his infinite mercy can adequately reward them.”

He however urged the youths  to work with the security agencies in the state, warning them  not to take law into their hands.

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