Tag: boko haram

How Buhari’s newly appointed Chief of Army Staff, Maj Gen Attahiru was sacked from Boko Haram front for ‘inefficiency’ in 2017

Newly appointed Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Major General Ibrahim Attahiru was once removed from his position as the theatre commander of the Operation Lafiya Dole in 2017, for inefficiency.

TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday accepted the immediate resignation of the Service Chiefs, and their retirement from service.

The new Service Chiefs are: Major-General Lucky E.O Irabor, Chief of Defence Staff; Major-General I. Attahiru, Chief of Army Staff; Rear Admiral A.Z Gambo, Chief of Naval Staff; and Air-Vice Marshal I.O Amao, Chief of Air Staff.

However, the Chief of Army Staff; Major-General I. Attahiru, who was the theatre commander of the Operation Lafiya Dole at in 2017 did not have a swell time in combating the terrorists. According to reports at the time, under his command, Boko Haram terrorists carried out daring operations with impunity.

There were suicide bombings across the three states in the North east.

Maiduguri, the most garrisoned city was also attacked by suicide bombers.

The former chief of army staff, who appointed Attahiru in May 2017 to the command had given him a 40-day ultimatum in August to capture Abubakar Shekau, the leader of the Boko Haram sect.

But he failed to do so.

Instead, a group of geologists and technologists from the University of Maiduguri and the NNPC were ambushed by Boko Haram insurgents at Magumeri area of Borno state.

About 12 soldiers who escorted the academics were killed.

Under Attahiru’s command, series of attacks were also carried out in Adamawa state.

In Yobe, two suicide bombers detonated their explosives in a market in Biu, killing about 18 people.

In Maiduguri, four female suicide bombers, attacked Muna Gari, a suburb of Maiduguri, killing about 14 people.

In Yola, about 40 people were killed when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives in a mosque.

A unit commander of the army and about 15 soldiers were killed in November when the insurgents attacked a military unit in Sassawa, Yobe state.

The last straw was the Biu market attack, in which 18 people died.

Buratai wasted no time in sacking Attahiru from the battle front, on 6 December, just after six months, from 31 May when he assumed the command.

Attahiru had taken over the command as a replacement to Major General Leo Irabor, who went to command the Multinational Joint Task Force in Ndjamena, Chad.

Irabor is now the new Chief of Defence staff appointed by Buhari today.

Removed from the command in early December and replaced by Roger Nicholas, Attahiru was despatched to the army headquarters as deputy chief of policy and plans, a non-cambatant post.

His last posting before he was appointed chief of army staff, was as GOC of 82 Division of Nigerian Army.

However, in his own self-evaluation, Attahiru gave his command a pass mark.

In a handing-over note to Major General Roger Nicholas, he said that the army operations in the troubled North-east under his leadership eliminated five top Boko Haram leaders alongside 70 other terrorists in several confrontations.

“I must say that since I assumed duty as the Theatre Commander Operation Lafiya Dole on May 30 2017, it has been very eventful operationally and administratively, particularly coming at a time when Boko Haram Terrorists, BHT, who, having been technically defeated and could no longer conduct sustained operations against own troops, resorted largely to engaging in terrorism related activities.

January 26, 2021
Boko Haram terrorists kill nine soldiers during rescue operation

Boko Haram terrorists in Nasarawa have killed nine military officers during a rescue operation in a forest along Mararaba-Udege road in Nasarawa state linking Otukpo Oweto in Benue state.

The slain soldiers led to the forest by an officer Felix Kura, an indigene of Benue state, were Iliya Kefas, Bati Yakubu and other young officers whose names cannot be identified immediately.

According to reports, the slain officers were on a mission to dislodge the Boko Haram terrorists from the forest who kidnapped many indigenes of the state and held them in captive.

The operation led to the death of about five Boko Haram terrorists before they were overpowered by the terrorists whose weapons, it was gathered, were more sophisticated than those used by the soldiers.

The slain soldiers, according to reports, were from the 177 Guards Battalion, Shitu Barracks in Keffi, Nasarawa state.

“As soon as they ran into the ambush and they realised they were being overpowered, Kura was said to have told his colleagues including his cover to escape.

“The authorities of the 117 Guards Battalion have informed the families of the slain soldiers of their fate and signal has been sent to the headquarters,” a source said.

A source in the barracks who spoke with The Nation said: “We actually lost nine soldiers in that mission and not seven, it is quite unfortunate but that is the supreme price of a military officer.

“We are currently collaborating with Four Special Forces Command of the Nigerian military headquarters in Doma LGA of the state to reinforce and launch a reprisal, we are not given up, we must overrun them and make sure we dislodge them completely.”

TheNewsGuru.com, TNG reports that the Nasarawa State Governor Abdullahi Sule on Friday raised the alarm over activities of the terror group, Boko Haram in the state.

He told State House Correspondents after a closed-door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari that Boko Haram fighters were regrouping in the state.

January 23, 2021
JUST IN: Boko Haram regrouping in my state, Nasarawa gov raises alarm

Nasarawa Governor Abdulahi Sule has raised the alarm over activities of the terror group, Boko Haram, in his state.

The Governor spoke to State House Correspondents on Friday after a closed-door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari in his office at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Abuja.

According to the Governor, members of the terror group, who were dislodged from a location along the Abuja/Nasarawa borders last year, had regrouped along the Nasarawa/Benue borders, wrecking new forms of havoc.

He said he was with the President to discuss the insecurity issue in Nasarawa along with other issues including the possible federal government take-over of Jitata Road, which serves as an alternative route from the state to the FCT.

He said some of the Boko Haram elements active in the Nasarawa State belong to the Darussalam group that had been dislodged from Niger, saying that upon a joint security operation, a lot of them were killed while 900 were arrested.

The Governor maintained that those arrested confirmed their membership of the Boko Haram insurgency group.

Sule said Nasarawa had continued to have security challenges, noting that having briefed the president, he is confident that action will be taken to curtail the menace.

Details shortly…

January 22, 2021
I’ve been vindicated that Buhari lacked capacity to rule Nigeria – Fayose

Former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose claimed he has been vindicated when he said in 2015 that President Muhammadu Buhari lacked the capacity to rule Nigeria.

Fayose was reacting to a report that terrorists captured a military base in Borno.

The military has however debunked the report.

Holding on to the earlier story, Fayose mocked Buhari and his service chiefs, describing the service chiefs as obsolete.

He wrote on his twitter handle: “Less than 4 days after President Buhari gleefully told Nigerians that security situation in the North-East under him is better than what it used to be, terrorists attacked and captured a Military Base in Borno State!

“A whole Military Base captured by terrorists! Isn’t this a “job well done” by the President and his obsolete Service Chiefs?

“They are indeed “doing well for keeping the country safer than the President met it.”

“Now Nigerians can appreciate why I insisted in 2015 that Buhari lacked the needed capacity to rule Nigeria.

“As for Nigerians, we are all on our own waiting for God’s deliverance from these taskmasters.”

January 17, 2021
Boko Haram is now a weakened enemy of Nigera – DHQ

The defence headquarters says Boko Haram insurgents are “weakened enemies” of the country and no longer have “sovereignty or authority” on any territory in the country.

The spokesperson for Defence Headquaters, John Enenche, stated this on Friday while speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today.

Eneche said as of 2015, Boko Haram had between 17 and 20 local government areas under its control.

He said but those territories were recaptured under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari.

“Yes, the commander-in-chief is very right by saying that we have a weaker BOKO Haram. Why is it so? In the sense that as at 2015, before they came on board, we had a very terrible situation in the northeast.

“Between 17 and 20 local government areas were under the full authority of the insurgents, that is the Boko Haram group and what does that translate to. It translated to a fact that they (referring to Boko Haram) constituted authority, local administration and judiciary.

“They were even collecting levies, which we can term taxes, the people were subject to them, they sack traditional rulers and most of them were into exile. By 2016, the whole place were recaptured.”

Eneche said the current crop of Boko Haram insurgents are hiding from one bush to another enclave with no capacity to fight.

“Now what we have as Boko Haram is a weakened enemy of the country, so it is very right going by my analysis I just made,” he said.

January 16, 2021
Fight continues till Boko Haram is defeated – Wounded Soldiers

Some Nigeria soldiers wounded during various encounters with the Boko Haram insurgents in the North East have vowed to return to the battlefield until the insurgents are defeated.

The soldiers made the pledge when Sen. Ali Ndume (APC-Borno), Chairman Senate Committee on Army, paid a fact finding visit to the 7 Division Medical Services and Hospital in Maiduguri on Sunday.

Cpl. Abubakar Bukar, who received bullet wounds during an insurgents ambush on troops at Damboa Road in December 2020, said he was ready to return to battle field to join his colleagues to continue the fight.

“Well, I want to thank God to have survived the attack. But as a soldier, I am ever ready to go back to join my colleagues to continue fighting until we librate our country,” he said.

Another wounded soldier, Cpl. Kolawole Omosheye, said they were attacked by the insurgents in Tunkushe on Dec. 29, 2020.

Omosheye said while engaging the insurgents in a battle which lasted more than 20 minutes, he was hit by a stray bullet.

“I am feeling better and in the next two weeks, I will be giong back to my location. We thank God and the GOC who came with reinforcement to repel the attack.

Pte. Saidu Dahiru also recounted his near to death experience when the insurgents attacked his location with mortar bombs in Damasak in December 23, 2020.

“They attacked us with several guntrucks mounted with Anti Air Craft. While engaging the insurgents they unfortunately fired mortar bombs at us and the fragment hit me on my back.

“But now they removed the fragment and I am getting better and in the next two weeks, I will be going back to continue the fight,” he said.

Ademola Felix, who expressed the same feelings vowed to hit back at the insurgents when he returned to his base at Gamborun Ngala.

Felix said that he was wounded when their vehicles stepped on an Improvised Explosive Device, noting that his colleagues died in the incident.

“I will go back to my base to hit them back. I will hit them hard,” Felix said.

In his remarks, Ndume said that the visit was part of efforts to encourage the army personnels who were wounded while fighting in various theatres of operation in the North East.

He said that the decision also followed recent publications by some news media alleging that wounded troops were neglected.

Ndume said such news can demoralise the troops who are sacrificing their lives to save the country.

“We have visited all the wards in the hospital and the medical care provided to the personnel’s were commendable.

“When we came, we were told that those that required additional care have been evacuated to 44 Reference Hospital Kaduna which is one of the best medical facilities on this nation.

“This country belong to all of us, we have the moral duty to encourage our fighting troops and to support them with all that they needed to execute the counter insurgency campaign.

“I want to tell the patient and the officers that we are all Nigerian, don’t be discouraged or demoralised. Just continue with your work. This work you are doing is not just a national duty alone but it is a Godly duty.

“God will reward you for your sacrifices. The committee and the National assembly will continue to stand by you.”

Ndume also commended the GOC 7 Division, Maj.-Gen. Abdul Khalifa, for his commitment that has led to the successes recorded under his leadership.

“Your patriotism and commitment is what transcended down to your troops. May Allah continue to guide you and we could see the light at the end of the tunnel. Normally the end is the must difficult,” he said.

Khalifa pledged the Military leadership commitment towards the welfare of all officers and soldiers in the devision.

“You have gone round and seen for yourself and you have also interacted with the wounded soldiers. We will continue doing our best to ensure that they are well taken care of,” he said.

Khalifa said that the troops had exhibited true spirit of professional soldiers and made great impact in the defence of the country.

January 11, 2021
Boko Haram bomber invades Northern Cameroon, kills 13

Thirteen civilians, eight of them children, died Friday when a woman suicide bomber blew herself up in a jihadist attack on a village in northern Cameroon, a traditional chief and a police confirmed.

Cameroon’s Far North region is grappling with deadly incursions from neighbouring Nigeria, where an insurgency launched by Boko Haram in 2009 has killed tens of thousands of people.

Mahamat Chetima Abba, the traditional chief, or lamido, in the village of Mozogo, said the attackers arrived in the middle of the night, shouting “Allah Akbar” (“God is greater”) and brandishing machetes.

The panicked villagers tried to run off into the nearby forest, and in the stampede the suicide bomber detonated her device, he said.

The account was confirmed by a member of the local defence committee, who said his group had tried to repel the attack.

“Thirteen civilians died, two of them children aged four and five as well as six teenagers,” a regional police officer told AFP by phone, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The lamido confirmed the number, saying that a woman and her three children were among the dead.

Both attributed the attack to Boko Haram.

The police source said that in addition to the suicide bomber, the other fatality among the attackers was a man who was killed by the self-defence force.

“They infiltrated the population — Boko Haram is inflicting more and more damage here,” Chetima Abba said.

“However, it seems that they no longer have the means to carry out mass attacks using guns,” he said, noting that the assailants had carried machetes.

“They are using home-made bombs more and more,” he said.

On Monday, three members of a self-defence force in the nearby village of Kaliari were killed.

More than 36,000 people have been killed, most of them in Nigeria, and three million people have fled their homes since Boko Haram launched its insurrection in northeastern Nigeria in 2009.

Boko Haram and a splinter group called the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) have stepped up attacks in recent years in Nigeria and neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon.

Niger is also being hit by jihadists crossing from Mali.

An attack on two villages in the western Niger region of Tillaberi on Saturday left 105 dead, the highest civilian toll in the Sahel since the jihadist insurgency began in the region in 2012.

January 8, 2021
Hunters, civilian JTF to get N352m in fight against Boko Haram

Authorities in Maiduguri have approved N352 million for the operations of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) and hunters, in the fight against insurgency in the state, the state information commissioner, Babakura Abba-Jato said on Thursday.

Mr. Abba-Jato noted that the approval was given at the first state executive council meeting of 2021, presided over by governor Babagana Zulum.

The Northeastern state has been under Boko Haram siege for over a decade, with the country’s security failing to contain their continual onslaught.

The governor has at times accused the military of shirking in their responsibilities to protect citizens. He once aired in confidence in local militias and hunters to better combat the insurgents if given the needed support.

Other approvals also given at the meeting, according to the commissioner, included the rehabilitation of Maiduguri – Damboa road at the cost of N658m and the extension of an ongoing Benisheikh township road project at the cost of N231 million.

He said the sum of N237 was approved for the construction of Ramat – Wulari road and drainage in Maiduguri metropolis.

The commissioner said that the council also approved N1.6 billion for the construction of the department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Borno State University Teaching Hospital.

Construction of 33 classrooms of two-storey mega school building in Buratai village, Biu Local Government, was also approved for the sum of N253 million, while the sum of N84 million was approved for the purchase laboratory equipment and reagents for technical college, Njimtilo, the commissioner said.A

January 7, 2021
Boko Haram abducts UN aid worker, others along Maiduguri-Damaturu Road

An aid worker has been abducted along the Maiduguri-Damaturu road.

Family sources confirmed the abduction of one Abubakar Idris, a staff of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Maiduguri.

The abduction occurred on Saturday morning around Jakana village, where no fewer than 20 travellers were abducted in a raid.

According to sources, the criminals believed to be insurgents, disguised as soldiers and mounted a checkpoint where they accosted travellers.

According to reports, when the travellers were searched and asked to display their Identity cards; Idris was immediately ordered down while other passengers were released to proceed.

Another Maiduguri-bound traveller simply identified as Comrade Muazu Bawa was also reportedly abducted in yesterday’s operation. It is not clear if there are more victims, considering the coordination of the attack.

The insurgents took advantage of the free road on that axis and their multiple exit routes around Jakana to beat security at the highly fortified 136km road and abduct passengers.

Travellers say since the December 18th attack that left many abducted, the security presence is heavy on the road.

January 3, 2021
NAF destroys new Boko Haram settlement in Borno

The Air Task Force of the Operation Lafiya Dole has destroyed a new Boko Haram settlement in Borno State.

According to a statement issued on Saturday by the Coordinator Defence Media Operations, Defence Headquarters, Major-General, John Enenche, the latest feat was achieved on January 1 at Mana Waji of the state.

“Air interdiction missions being conducted by the Air Task Force of Operation Lafiya Dole have continued to deal decisive blows on terrorist elements operating in the North East Zone of the Country with the elimination of Boko Haram Terrorists (BHTs) and destruction of their structures and logistics store,” the statement read in part.

“The airstrikes, which were executed employing a force package of Nigerian Air Force (NAF) fighter jets and helicopter gunships, were carried out after series of aerial surveillance missions revealed that the new settlement was being used to store their weapons and logistics items and as well as plan and stage attacks. On sighting the NAF aircraft, the insurgents were seen fleeing the location.

“Consequently, in a preemptive move, the NAF attack aircraft engaged the new location in successive passes, leading to the destruction of some of the structures and logistics stores. Several insurgents were also neutralized in the process”.

January 2, 2021