Boko Haram: Unconfirmed report says Military kill over 100 militants in Borno

There is unconfirmed report that military troops in Borno State carried out another successful operation at Sambisa forest on Monday, leaving no fewer than 100 Boko Haram militants dead.

A source who spoke to DailyPost in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, said it is believed that many camps might have been destroyed as well.

DailyPost reports that military helicopter and fighter jets were seen hovering around the state capital and heading towards the Sambisa forest.

It would be recalled that when the Chief of Army Staff, Lt General, Azubuike Ihejirika addressed the officers at the 7 Division Nigerian Army headquarters in Maiduguri, he urged them to prepare and make necessary sacrifice to bring an end to insurgency in Borno and North-East in general.

A response is still being awaited on an email message sent to the spokesman of the 7 Division Nigerian Army, Col Muhammad Dole, for confirmation of the military attacks.

Boko Haram: CAN expresses worries over fresh attacks on Christians

The Christian Association of
Nigeria, CAN, has expressed
worries over the continued killing
of Christians by the Islamic sect,
Boko Haram in Northern Nigeria. The Christian body in a statement
issued at the end of its special
meeting in Abuja yesterday, raised
the alarm that despite the state of
emergency declared in the North-
Eastern part of the country, the attacks on Christians in the part of
the country still linger. It said suspected Boko Haram
members attacked Ngoshe village
in Gwoza local government area of
Borno State on November 3, and
killed eight Christians. It also
alleged that several churches had been razed since the killing was
carried out without the arrest of
any of the insurgents arrested. In the statement, CAN stated that
“on the 3rd of this month, at
about 8pm, Boko Haram members
attacked Ngoshe village in Gwoza
local government area of Borno
State and killed 8 Christians, who were identified as Baba Ayuba,
Baba Bitrus and Baba Isa Biyabra,
the security guard and four others
whose names we are yet to get. “They burnt 11 houses owned by
the Christians and three churches,
which were EYN church, Deeper
Life Bible church and the
Redeemed Christian Church of God
(RCCG). We were informed that when the Christian community
sought to meet the state governor
on this issue, he said there was no
time to see them until February
next year.” CAN also recalled that on
November 14, Boko Haram also
invaded a Christian dominated
village in Gwoza local government
area and killed two Christians,
abducted three others and burnt more than 100 houses.

US declares Boko Haram as terror group

The United States has Wednesday designated radical Islamist sects, Ahl as-Sunnah lid-daʻwa wal-Jihād, also known as  Boko Haram and Ansaru as  foreign terrorist organisations, FTOs.

“These designations are an important and appropriate step, but only one tool in what must be a comprehensive approach by the Nigerian government to counter these groups … to help root out violent extremism,” the State Department said in a statement.

A picture taken from a video distributed to journalists in recent days through intermediaries and obtained by AFP on March 5, 2013 reportedly shows Abubakar Shekau (C), the suspected leader of Nigerian Islamist extremist group Boko Haram, flanked by six armed and hooded fighters in an undisclosed place.

The State Department’s  statement, quoted by agencies reports, reads:  ”In the last several years, Boko Haram and Ansaru have been responsible for thousands of deaths in northeast and central Nigeria, including dozens of attacks on churches and mosques, targeted killings of civilians, and the 2011 suicide bombing of the United Nations building in Abuja that killed 21 people and injured dozens more,” White House homeland security advisor Lisa Monaco said in a statement.

“By cutting these terrorist organizations off from US financial institutions and enabling banks to freeze assets held in the United States, these designations demonstrate our strong support for Nigeria’s fight against terrorism and its efforts to address security challenges in the north.”

“All of our assistance to Nigeria stresses the importance of protecting civilians and ensuring that human rights are respected. That assistance and these designations demonstrate US support for the Nigerian people’s fight against Boko Haram and Ansaru,” the State Department said.

Vanguard checks on the US Department of State’s website revealed that Boko Haram and Ansaru were listed as number 52 and 53, respectively, on the Foreign Terrorist Organisations list.

Other FTOs on the list are; HAMAS, Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), al-Qa’ida (AQ), al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), Indian Mujahedeen (IM), al-Shabaab, Communist Party of the Philippines/New People’s Army (CPP/NPA), Real Irish Republican Army (RIRA) among others.

Boko Haram victims deserve compensation – SERAP

Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, has appealed to President Goodluck Jonathan to “reverse the recently announced policy of zero compensation for victims of Boko Haram attacks.”

The group said that the government should “within 14 days announce compensation and reparation policies for victims of attacks by Boko Haram, and begin a process of establishing mechanisms for the effective and transparent implementation of such policies.”

The group, in the appeal by its Executive Director, Mr. Adetokunbo Mumuni, threatened to take “all necessary legal actions nationally and internationally to compel the government to fulfil its international human rights obligations and commitments,” if the government does not comply with its appeal.

The group said: “In the wake of the devastation by Boko Haram, compensation and reparation programmes are absolutely essential to deliver justice to the victims of human rights abuses precipitated by the group. Paying compensation and reparation to victims of human rights abuses by Boko Haram is a matter of rights and not charity. Refusing or failing to pay adequate compensation and reparation to victims is to buy impunity for perpetrators.”

“SERAP is seriously concerned about the policy of your government that there will be no compensation paid to victims of Boko Haram attacks. This policy is a clear violation of the country’s international human rights obligations and commitments to provide effective remedies, including compensation and reparation to victims of serious human rights abuses such as those perpetrated by Boko Haram.

“The attacks against innocent citizens by the Boko Haram constitute gross violations of international human rights law, having being systematically perpetrated, and affecting in qualitative and quantitative terms, the most basic rights of human beings, notably the right to life and the right to physical and moral integrity of the human person,” SERAP added.

Boko Haram attacks wedding convoy, kills groom, 30 others

Gunmen in north-eastern Nigeria city of Borno state have reportedly killed 30 people in an attack on a wedding convoy.

The incident occurred on a notoriously dangerous road between Bama and Banki in Borno State.

The groom was one of those said to have been killed in the attack.

Despite the state of emergency declared by the Nigerian government, the Islamist militant group, Boko Haram has continued to attack Borno residents and the special security forces mobilized to the state.

A commercial driver who ran into the scene of the attack had told AFP news agency that many of the victims appeared to have died out of bullet wounds.

“All the victims were brutally murdered by the attackers,” said the driver, who had pleaded that his identity be concealed.

“My passengers and I were shocked when we met the dead bodies lying by the highway.”

It is not clear whether the bride and his family members survived the attack.

BOKO HARAM: 30 killed in fresh Adamawa ambush

A bridegroom, family members and friends were said to be among 30 persons killed yesterday in an attack by insurgents believed to be members of Boko Haram in Michika local government area of Adamawa State.

The victims, eye witnesses said, were returning from a wedding Fatiha in Michika town when they ran into an ambush laid by the insurgents.

The incident, it was learnt,  happened along Bama- Banki -Firgi highway.

Boko haram

One of the eye witnesses, a motorist, told our correspondent, in Maiduguri, Borno State capital “ I travelled on Adamawa- Michika – Bama- Maiduguri road. When we reached a place in the Firgi area, we saw many bodies many of which were riddled with bullets while some were covered in blood having been  slaughtered beside the road. My passengers advised we should return to Michika, but I  told them God was in control”.

A source in one of the federal owned hospitals in Maiduguri said: “We have received the bodies of over 30 people suspected to have been killed while coming from a wedding Fatiha as most of them wore  same wedding uniforms (Anko in Hausa) on Saturday evening, but we are are yet to ascertain who are those behind such a deadly attack”.

Spokesman for the 7 Division, Nigerian Army, Lt. Colonel Mohammed Dole, and the Borno State Police Public Relations Officer, DSP, Gideon Jubrin could not be reached for confirmation of the attack  at the time of going to press.

Boko Haram destroys Military post, snatches patrol vehicles, arms in Borno

Barely three days after gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram sect members launched multiple attacks in Damaturu, the Yobe State Capital, which led to the burning down of some military posts/checkpoints including Police stations, other terrorists suspected to be members of the sect have launched a deadly attack at a military checkpoint on Bama- Banki Junction road killing four people suspected to be security operatives.

Their target, DailyPost gathered was the military patrol vehicles including arms and ammunitions.

Bama-Banki road is along the Firgi-Gwoza federal highway located around the Sambisa Game Forests which links Pilka town of Gwoza, Bama and Banki-Cameroun boarder that also harbour a lot of Boko Haram camps claimed to have been destroyed by the military offensive since the declaration for the state of emergency on 14th May, 2013.

Our Correspondent gathered that the gunmen who were fully armed with Rocket Propelled Grenade, and Improvised Explosive Devises (IED’s) invaded the military checkpoint at about 11:26 pm on Saturday and started opening fire on the security agencies where they overpowered them killing four people believed to be security agencies, before they went away with their patrol vehicle.

It was also gathered that the suspected terrorists set ablaze the entire houses, filling stations and shops around the popular Junction including the security post before they escaped.

A source who is also a motorist that plied the road from Gombi Council Area of Adamawa State to Maiduguri, Mallam Yakubu Musa told our correspondent that he was disturbed when he reached the Junction on Sunday Morning only to see that the whole area was deserted, and smokes coming out from building structures situated in the area.

“You know that the Bama- Banki Junction is a busy place where people, particularly business men make their ends meet on a daily basis.

“Also, you should expect a lot of civilian and security casualties due to number of motorists and smugglers that patronise the road to Cameroun Republic, as well as”, he said.

'My Brother Forced Me into Boko Haram'

An arrested member of the outlawed Boko Haram sect Saturday painted a gory picture of life within the enclave the sect members had been pushed to by the military forces. According to him, many of the sect members are living as if in hell and if not for fear that they could be killed if caught by the group they would have fled their forest camps. The captured Boko Haram member was allowed by military authorities to recount his ordeal to journalists.
He said his brother forced him into the Boko Haram sect. Accoding to him, the brother was always coming home with guns, which he would hide at home.
The 22-year-old member of the terrorist group, while advising youths to stay far away from the sect, said life of Boko Haram sect members was a life of hardship through and through. He stated that his brother told him he had a choice to either join the sect or get killed, as he was already aware of some of the group’s secrets.
He said his brother, who had since been killed in one of the attacks launched by the sect, equally told him that either way he would be killed if he did not join the sect as he was at the mercy of the Boko Haram or the soldiers that may come home looking for him. On how he was captured, he said: "We launched an attack in Damboa and I was shot and my colleagues who thought I was killed left me behind but later when I regained consciousness I crawled to the road. "I was picked up by the police later and I told them I was willing to volunteer information. I was asked by a senior police officer how I got recruited into the group, which I told him. He later handed me over to the army where I was kept since."
The sect member, who said once initiated into the group, it was suicidal to denounce its membership, added "We are counted after every week or two to know who might have left and any of us found missing will be looked for and if he is found to have fled would be slaughtered if caught." He said he fled from the group to Lagos at a particular point, but came back and that his life was spared after a long argument.
The sect member, now on clutches, said should the federal government grant him amnesty, he would like to be a soldier fighting on the side of the nation, stressing that while in the forest camp he lived a life of perpetual fear. "Sometimes when
we going for attacks I always felt like hiding. But there is no place to hide for me," he said. He said he has come to realise that there is nothing religious in their fight against the Nigerian government, "I now see it as banditry but others that are still there see it as a Jihad, working for God." He also revealed that the war being waged by the sect was now against everybody and anybody, and not restricted to the army or police as it used to be in the past. The sect member said once the society had shown resentment against them and and chased them away from particularly Maiduguri, they chose to take the battle to the civilian Joint Task Force members and every resident of Maiduguri in
sight and this was responsible for the highway attacks. He said the sect had lots of food and medicine in their stores, adding that during "our raids we steal food and medicine and other needs which we keep in our stores." Meanwhile, the Acting Brigade Commander of 21 Armoured Brigade, Maiduguri, Col. Ibrahim Yusuf, said the federal government had always shown that it was ready to end the Boko Haram crisis as soon as possible and was still willing to give amnesty to any of the sect members who is ready to drop his arms to embrace peace. He said: "Once you come out, we will treat you as a captured member, we all know the intention of government to see an end to this crisis."

Terror: Army kills over 95 insurgents in Borno

In continuation of its fight against Boko Haram
Insurgents in the North-East, the troops of 7
Division of the Nigerian Army have destroyed
Boko Haram camp, killing over 95 insurgents in
Galangi and Limanti villages of Kaga local
government area of Borno state. The invasion came barely some hours after attack
on military and police locations in Damaturu the
capital of Yobe State by gunmen suspected to be
Boko Haram members yesterday. The gunmen
had access and launched coordinated attacks
using Rocket Propelled Launchers and Improvised Explosive Devices (EIDs) on different military
checkpoints within the metropolis killing several
people. Mallam Abdulwasiu Akinsanya, a staff of Media
Trust, publishers of Daily Trust, Weekly Trust and
Sunday Trust was among several civilians that
were killed in Damaturu when the gunmen
launched multiple attacks on military and police
locations as well as public and private buildings on Thursday. His Wife, Bilkisu A. Akinsanya
confirmed that her husband was killed around
5.30pm when their vehicle broke down in
Damaturu shortly before the Boko Haram
insurgents launched the attacks.



Explaining the military invasion, the insurgents,
the Army in a Press release signed by its
spokesman LT Col Muhammad Dole stated that
the operations which involved ground and aerial
assault supported by the Nigerian Airforce led to
the destruction of the terrorist camp, killing of over 95 insurgents, while several others escaped
with gunshot wounds. Items recovered from the terrorist’s camp,
according to the release includes two Isuzu Tiger
Pick-up Vans and five Hilux belonging to the
terrorists were destroyed, while two soldiers were
wounded during the operation. General Ethan also reiterated the commitment of
the Nigerian Army 7 Division to ensuring safety of
lives and property of all citizens within its area of
operations. Witnesses of the Damaturu onslaught said the
gunmen first launched attack around the NNPC
Mega station, a suburb of Damaturu which had
been a GSM Call centre for Maiduguri residents
who on daily basis travel from Maiduguri due to
lack of telecommunication network to make calls. The NNPC Mega Station is about 2 kilometres
away to the City of Damaturu where military
operatives have one of their checkpoints, a few
metres away from the station, and because of the
presence of the security checkpoint, many phone
callers from Maiduguri turned the place to a call centre with adequate security cover; but the
gunmen launched their deadly attack on the area
before moving to other places in the city. The attack which signaled their presence before
penetrating the town after a while started around
5:30pm and lasted till midnight as security
operatives responded promptly. Although, the number of casualties was sketchy
at press time, sources said, several terrorists were
killed including security operatives. Residents said sound of gun shots and Improvise
Explosive Devices (IED) were heard across all the
nook and crannies of the town, but could not give
further details as to how many people were
affected in the attacks. A source said, “I saw dead bodies on the streets
near my house, but could not ascertain whether
the dead bodies are that of Boko Haram
members, innocent civilians or security
operatives”. The spokesman of the Special Operation Battalion
in Yobe state, captain Eli Lazarus who confirmed
the attack said ”security forces in the state capital
are in a gun battle with the insurgents.” Shortly after the confirmation of the attack,
Captain Eli Lazarus in a statement said “the
Special operation Battalion Damaturu hereby
imposed a 24 hours curfew across Yobe state
with immediate effect, as the battalion steps up
its operation to rid the state of insurgents”. The statement urged law abiding citizens to
remain calm and to accord the security operatives
the usual cooperation. Security forces are yet to confirm the level of
casualties or destruction caused by the attack
which lasted for over eight hours. The Special Operation Battalion Damaturu had
early yesterday reviewed the curfew time in
Potiskum town between the hours of 10PM – 6:00
AM to 9: PM – 6: 00 AM. Yesterday’s attack was a serious setback to the
relative peace being enjoyed across the state and
Damaturu the state capital in particular.

Boko Haram Unleashes Terror On Yobe Town

Boko Haram Islamist insurgents have
rampaged through a town in northeastern
Nigeria with heavy weapons, setting public
buildings on fire and killing a soldier and the
wife of a senior policeman, authorities said
Thursday. The attack on Wednesday was the latest
carnage to hit the region, which has seen an
upsurge in violence in recent days linked to
a military offensive as well as attacks by
Islamist extremist group Boko Haram. Armed with Kalashnikovs, rocket launchers
and homemade bombs, the Islamists stormed
Yadi Buni in Yobe state around 10:00 pm,
leading to a shootout with troops in which a
soldier was killed, state police commissioner
Sanusi Rufa’i said. They set fire to a makeshift police station,
the fire service, a local education office and
the home of the divisional police head in the
town, whose wife was burnt to death
inside, Rufa’i said. “Buni Yadi was attacked last night by Boko
Haram insurgents,” he said. “A soldier was
killed in a shootout and the wife of the
(divisional police chief) was burnt to death in
her home.” Telecom towers in the town were also
burnt by the Islamists, the police
commissioner said. It was the second time Buni Yadi was
attacked by Boko Haram in as many months. Scores of people have been left dead in
recent days from military raids or Boko
Haram attacks. The military claimed on Wednesday that a
strike on a Boko Haram camp in the
northeast last week left about 150 Islamists
and 16 soldiers dead, amid reports of dozens
of troops killed. On Tuesday night, suspected Boko Haram
members dressed as soldiers set up
checkpoints in the Benishiek area, killing an
unclear number of people and burning some
50 buildings. Some residents spoke of around 20 people
or more killed in Tuesday’s violence, but
there has been no official death toll. The attacks as well as claims and
counterclaims regarding last week’s
violence again raised questions over a four-
month-old military offensive seeking to end
a years-long insurgency by Boko Haram.
[AFP]

Boko Haram Blamed as Borno Records 14 Polio Cases

The Boko Haram insurgency has been
identified as the factor responsible for the
recent rise in the cases of poliomyelitis in
Borno State. According to the Borno State Commissioner
for Health, Dr. Salma Anas-Kolo, the state,
with 14 cases was the highest in the country
which he blamed on insecurity in many parts
of the state, which made difficult for health
workers to immunize children in the state. Anas-Kolo disclosed yesterday at a
sensitisation programme for traditional
leaders in the state that Borno has 14 cases
of polio out of the nation's 37 and the
global 44 cases.
She said that the sensitisation programme became imperative in order to meet the
2014 World Health Organisation (WHO)'s
target of freeing the globe of polio. The commissioner, who explained that
Maiduguri was picked for the kick off of the
sensitisation programme because it
recorded the highest cases of six in the
state with its neighbouring council having
four cases, said it was not all a sad story as the incidences could have been higher but
for the dedication of health workers that
withstood the insecurity and went to some
areas to get children immunised. The Shehu of Borno, Alhaji Abubakar Ibn
Garbai Al-Amin Elkanemi, who hosted the
sensitisation programme at his palace,
called on his subjects to avail their children
from 0-5 years to take immunization
vaccine against the five killer diseases. He asked all traditional institutions in the
state to intensify effort towards fighting
polio, insisting that the government would
not give them any drug that will harm them. He admonished them to tell their subjects
to take the drug, noting that Borno being
the citadel of knowledge cannot continue to
promote the idea that immunization is
targeting at birth reduction.

Boko Haram Bombs Police Station, Kills 2 Cops

A police station in Nigeria’s restive
northeast, has been attacked by gunmen
with explosives and rocket-propelled
grenades, killing two officers and
injuring another in an incident similar to
previous raids by Islamist extremists, Boko Haram, authorities said Thursday. “The heavily armed gunmen headed to
the police station and burnt it down
using IEDs (improvised explosive devices)
and RPGs before engaging our men in a
shootout in which we lost two officers
while a third sustained gunshot wounds,” Adamawa state police
spokesman Mohammed Ibrahim told
AFP. He said the attackers, in cars and on
motorcycles stormed Ga’anda village on
Wednesday where they burnt down the
police station with homemade bombs
and grenades. “Our officers were overpowered by the
attackers who had superior firepower,”
he said, adding that a police patrol
vehicle was also burnt in the attack that
lasted two hours. No arrest has been made, he added. Residents of Ga’anda said some 20
gunmen had entered the village around
9:00 p.m. chanting “Allahu Akbar”. Nigerian authorities in May launched a
military offensive aiming to end a deadly
four-year insurgency by Islamist
extremist group Boko Haram focused in
the country’s northeast. Violence linked to the insurgency has left
more than 3,600 dead since 2009,
including killings by the security forces,
who have been accused of major abuses. The group has claimed to be fighting for
the creation of an Islamic state in Africa’s
most populous nation and largest oil
producer, though it is believed to have a
number of factions with varying aims

10 Boko Haram Members Killed In Clashes, Air Strike

10 suspected members of Boko Haram were
killed in a clash in north eastern Nigeria after
troops launched an air strike, the military said
Wednesday. Troops clashed with “fleeing Boko Haram
terrorists” late Tuesday following the
destruction of two alleged Boko Haram camps
in the Konduga area of Borno state, according
to the military. The clash followed an “air strike and
subsequent destruction of two Boko Haram
terrorist camps at Mada, Konduga local
government area of Borno state,” Lieutenant
Colonel Sagir Musa said in a statement. It occurred on the road as troops were
travelling to the town of Biu and “had an
encounter with fleeing Boko Haram terrorists,”
it said. “Ten terrorists lost their lives and some
ammunition, including four AK-47 rifles, five
AK-47 magazines and 250 rounds of assorted
ammunition, were recovered,” the statement
said. “Ten motorcycles belonging to the sect
members were destroyed in the air and land
raid,” he said. Boko Haram’s insurgency has left more than
3,600 people dead since 2009, including
killings by the security forces, who have been
accused of major abuses.

Boko Haram Kills Six Civilian JTF Members In Borno

Suspected members of Islamist sect Boko
Haram on Tuesday shot dead six members
of the youth vigilante group, popularly
called Civilian JTF in Borno State, in the
border town of Damasak, Mobar Local
Government Area of the state. Damasak is about 187 kilometres away
from Maiduguri, the state capital, and share
border with Niger Republic. The area is
believed to be the safe haven of the
insurgents after they were dislodged from
their bush camps and Maiduguri by the special forces. The youths who are mostly traders and
residents of Maiduguri, but volunteered to
help the Joint Task Force, JTF, in fighting
terrorism in the region, met their untimely
death when they were shot dead by four
gunmen in a house where they had gone to pass the night around 1 a.m. by four
gunmen. The names of the killed youths were given
as Ismail Alhaji Bunu, 36, Malam Goni, 27,
Buzu Bukar, 27, Mohammed Modu, 20, Aliyu
Jibrin, 30 and Bukar Bako, 20. It was learnt that five of the victims were
traders of necklaces while one of them was
a driver, who usually conveyed them to the
town’s market every Monday. A member of the vigilante group, Kariyama
Mohammed, who also went to Damasak, but
did not pass the night in the same house
with the victims, said: “We were travelling
together to Damasak to sell necklaces, but I
did not sleep in the same house with them. It was in the morning that I learnt of their
death.” Another resident of the town, who spoke to
journalists, said the assailants, who were
four in number, shot their victims dead
when they were fast asleep, before they
fled into the bush. The bodies of the victims were later seen at
the sector 1 headquarters of the Joint Task
Force (JTF) in Baga road, from where they
were conveyed to Maiduguri by policemen
from Damasak and later taken to their
family houses for burial. Expressing regrets over the death of the
youths, Chairman of the vigilante group in
Baga road, Alhaji A.D. Bakura said, the
deceased were members of the group who
worked tirelessly to defend the state from
the insurgents.

Another Boko Haram Attack Leaves 44 Dead in Borno Village

Gunmen suspected to be members of the outlawed Boko Haram sect in yet another reprisal attack on Tuesday night killed 44 persons and injured several others at Dumba Village on the outskirts of Baga, in Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State. Members of the sect, who have been forced to flee from their enclaves by the Borno Youth Vigilante Group and the security Joint Task Force in the state, have in the last couple of days been attacking Borno villages and killing people. The sect alleged that the villagers have been assisting the security agents and as at the last count, over 100 persons have been killed in reprisal attacks on Baga, Konduga and Gwoza. Sources told journalists yesterday that about 50 gunmen stormed Dumba Village during the Tuesday night deadly attack that resulted in the death of 44 villagers. Many people were also said to have been injured in the ensuing melee. It was learnt that the gunmen also set fire on some houses in the village. It was gathered in Maiduguri yesterday that rescue workers have been mobilized to the area with the aim of providing medical services and succour to the surviving victims. ‘’As I am speaking to you now, Red Cross officials and the Doctors without Borders are attending to the injured victims’’ a rescue workers with a federal government agency who
pleaded anonymity told reporters yesterday. According to him, the village has been deserted and the people are now taking refuge at the Baga Central Primary School.
A source at the National Emergency Management Agency who also confirmed the incident, said the agency has mobilized to the area to access the situation. According to him, the agency will on Saturday (today) set up camps for the displaced victims.
The spokesman of the Joint Task Force, Lt. Col. Sagir Musa was not available for comment as at the time of filing this report last night.
In another development, two Boko Haram suspects who disguised as females in order to escape the wrath of the Civilian JTF were yesterday in Jimtilo Ward of Maiduguri Metropolis arrested. The two were subsequently killed by a mob as they were trying to fight their way to freedom. Sources said their corpses were later dumped in Hausari Ward in the town. It was gathered that the two suspects were on their way to Maiduguri to unleash terror, but they ran out of luck as they were intercepted by the vigilante youths at Jimtilo, which is about eight kilometres away and also a western
entrance point to Maiduguri.

Boko Haram Strikes Again – At Least 11 Civilians, 2 Terrorists Dead in Borno

At least 13 persons were reportedly killed
when members of the infamous terrorist
group, Boko Haram, attacked Damboa
Village, about 85 km north of Maiduguri, the
Borno State capital. The attack happened on
the night of August 15, 2013, Thursday.

According to Ayamu Gwasha, who
represents Konduga in the Borno State
House of Assembly, the alleged Boko
Haram gunmen invaded the agrarian village
famous for producing most of the grocery
requirements of the state at about 7.30 p.m.; and attacked several places including
the security formations. “Our people have been killed last night by
these people. We had anticipated this
attack, because we are border neighbour to
Konduga where 44 persons were killed early
this week, that was why we immediately
alerted the security agencies for security beef up, which was being considered before
they attacked,” said Mr. Gwasha. Another source, representing security
forces, name and position withheld,
confirmed the incident. “The incident happened at about 7.30 p.m.
About 50 Boko Haram terrorists drove into
Damboa in nine Volkswagen Golf cars and
four motorcycles. They attacked Damboa
police station, but the officers there
effectively repelled them; they also attempted attacking the military post in the
town but the soldiers also repelled them.
While that was going on, another group were
busy attacking the village and burning some
of the houses. “After the attack, which lasted till 12 a.m.,
eleven civilians died, two members of the
Boko Haram were killed by the police,” said
the security source. “About 20 houses including that of the local
government chairman and several shops
were burnt down. The terrorists had also
looted most of the shops and filled a truck
with food items, but they were not lucky to
escape with the loot as the laden vehicle got stuck in the muddy road.” A local farmer, Mustapha Aji, who was lucky
enough to escaped through the bushes to
Maiduguri town, told the reporters that
villagers had to flee their homes and spend
the night in the bushes while the attack was
going on. He said he believed that foreign mercenaries were among the terrorists who
attacked. “The shooting was too much; it started
immediately after the Isha (late night)
prayers. The shooters came in several cars
and began to shoot and burning houses and
shops. Some of them are aliens, because
they were speaking Arab fluently. They were carrying big, big guns, some were
throwing bombs. Everywhere was on fire I
had to run for my life,” said 46-year-old Mr.
Aji. Damboa had suffered several similar
attacks in the past one year which led to
killing of several persons and destruction of
properties. Mr. Sagir Musa, the spokesman of JTF in
Borno, could not be reached on the latest
attack, as his telephone numbers are not
available due to network problems in Borno.

Boko Haram Second-in-command Killed In Borno

The Joint Task Force (JTF) in Borno State has
claimed it had killed Momodu Bama, second-
in-command to the Boko Haram leader,
Abubakar Shekau, during a recent
confrontation in the state. The task force also claimed that Bama’s father,
Abatcha Flatari, a spiritual leader of the sect,
was also killed during the confrontation. The JTF claimed that Bama and his father were
killed in a counter attack in Bama, when the
sect attacked the riot police base in Bama,
headquarters of Bama Local Government Area
of the state on August 4, adding that the
killing was contrary to report in some quarters that another Muhammad Bama, on whose
head a bounty of N10 million was placed, was
killed in Mubi, Adamawa State. Spokesman of the JTF, Lt. Col. Sagir Musa,
while confirming the killing said Momodu was
killed along with his father during an attack
on police base, adding that even before his
killing, the JTF had placed N25 million bounty
on his head and not N10 million as claimed by the report. Defending why the JTF have not said anything
about it since Bama’s killing, Musa said it took
the JTF this long to break the news of the
killing of Bama and his father to the media
because they wanted to be sure they were
actually the ones fell in the confrontation in order to guard against misinformation. Musa, showing a flyer where Bama and his
leader, Abubakar Shekau, were declared
wanted with bounties of N25 million and N50
million respectively, said Bama was the
second-in-command to Shekau and next in
notoriety to the sect leader. The JTF spokesman stated that Momodu was
an indigene of Bama town and a member of
the Boko Haram Shurra committee (decision-
making or highest body of the sect), adding
that he was a tall, slim and dark man, who
spoke Kanuri, Hausa, Arabic and English languages well. He added that Bama was one of the most
vicious and heartless killers in the group with
a penchant for slaughtering his victims. The spokesman said the father of the slain
Boko Haram sect leader, Abatcha Flatari, was
one of the spiritual mentors of the Boko
Haram terrorists in charge of indoctrinating
child foot soldiers, who were in most cases
abducted. Musa, however, assured residents of the state
that major roads and GSM lines would soon be
opened, noting that the security situation was
improving. Also confirming the killing of Bama, the
Director of Defence Information (DDI), Brig-
Gen. Chris Olukolade, disclosed that Bama was
killed during a shoot-out with the troops of
JTF who were determined to dislodge the
terrorists, who recently massacred about 60 people in some parts of Borno State. “As troops intensify pursuit of terrorists who
have been unleashing mayhem in Borno and
Yobe communities, the death of Momodu
Bama, said to be the second-in-command to
the leader of Shekau, has been confirmed by
other arrested terrorists. “This followed encounters with the terrorists
around the Bama corridor. Momodu Bama has
been personally leading the attacks against
troops and innocent citizens in the
communities of Yobe and Adamawa,”
Olukolade said. The slain leader of the insurgents was said to
have assumed his current duties, when the
former second-in-command to Mohammed
Marwana, broke ranks with Shekau into a rival
Boko Haram sect that was alleged to be
negotiating with Alhaji Taminu Turaki-led Presidential Committee on Dialogue and
Peaceful Resolution on Security Challenges in
the North (Amnesty Committee).

UN, UK Condemn Borno Mosque Massacre

The United Nations and the United Kingdom have condemned the massacre of 44 people in Borno State who were killed as they prayed in their mosque by the Boko Haram Islamic sect last Sunday.

Gunmen wearing Nigerian army camouflage fatigues struck under cover of darkness as residents were saying their dawn prayers at around 5:30 a.m. last Sunday, just as another 12 civilians died in a simultaneous attack on Ngom village just outside Maiduguri, .

British Cabinet Minister, Mark Simmonds, yesterday condemned the attack as “contemptible and cowardly”.

“Attacking innocent people in a place of worship is a contemptible and cowardly act,” the Foreign Office Minister for Africa Mark Simmonds said in a statement Tuesday.

He said Britain “stands with the government and people of Nigeria as they seek to reduce violence in the north east of the country.”

Also speaking on the attack, UN Secretary General, Ban ki Moon called for dialogue in resolving the violence.

A report in UN News Centre yesterday said the Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a statement signed by his spokesperson called on all extremist groups in Nigeria to cease attacks, after 44 people were killed in Borno State, including worshippers reportedly shot to death while praying inside a mosque.

“The Secretary-General strongly condemns the recent violent attacks that have killed scores of civilians in the localities of Mafa and Kondugo in Borno State,” his spokesperson said in a statement.

Ban therefore called on all parties to resolve their differences through dialogue and other peaceful means.

“The Secretary-General reiterated his firm conviction that no objective can be attained through such violence,” the spokesperson stressed.

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Interior Minister, Abba Moro, has dismissed the attack in the mosque and the Boko Haram threat as “desperate” and “isolated”.

Abba Moro in his reaction told the BBC’s Focus on Africa programme yesterday that, “The security agencies of Nigeria have been able to push the Boko Haram sect from their major strongholds”.

Boko Haram: Military Denies High Casualties in Borno Attack

Boko Haram

The military has rebuffed claims that the troops of the Joint Task Force (JTF) suffered high casualties when two military camps were attacked on August 4 at Mallam Fatori in Borno State. Speaking to THISDAY, the Director of Defence Information (DDI), Brig-Gen. Chris Olukolade waved off such claims as false.
Olukolade, who was reluctant to speak on the matter when THISDAY enquired about the rumoured killings of 12 soldiers and the disappearance of 20 others, simply said: "It is not true. I don't know where they got that information from." However, it was gathered that that has been some information filtering from unofficial sources within the theatre of operation in Yobe and Borno. It was alleged that some of the soldiers have not been happy at the turn of the events and what they described as the very "limited success" against the insurgents in the last few weeks. This has been linked to the arrival of troops from Malian operations who are yet to master the terrain in Yobe and Borno.
Several wounded soldiers are alleged to be currently receiving treatment at the 79 Compopsite Group, Air Force Base, Maiduguri, Borno THISDAY also learnt that it was only a convoy of heavy military equipment including armoured tanks that was attacked, following which three soldiers were killed and seven others were wounded.
A reliable military source disclosed that it was a
slow moving Payloader conveying armoured tanks with 10 soldiers that was attacked and three of them killed. The source also clarified that non of the troops who recently arrived from Mali was involved or affected by the attacks on Mallam Fatori.
The source said: "No Malian soldiers was attacked, that is not true and this is not a matter of ambush as being reported or who (Malian returnees) does not know the town. It is not even related. "The way they (media) are calling it ambush is not the right term. I would rather call it an attack on a convoy of military equipment including a Payloader that was being used to carry the armoured tanks. You know it is usually a slow moving vehicle. So it was that vehicle with a crew of 10 soldiers that was attacked. They were not even up to 10." Another security analyst, who also confided in THISDAY, disclosed that some "disgruntled elements within the military ranks and civilians have been leaking and spreading information for selfish purposes."
The source accused some his colleagues of being alarmist with a hidden agenda, and with the connivance of their civilian counterparts, have a different agenda to fulfil. "There are two sources to all these falsehoods and conflicting figures. Those sources of information from that area (of conflict) are those within the military who are just sending out information that they think will benefit them and to raise fear.
"Then there are also the civilians who deliberately want to be mischievous. The attacks have been exaggerated," the source said.

Boko Haram Leader Claims Kano Attacks In Video, Challenges Obama, Hollande

Leader of Nigeria’s Boko Haram Islamists has claimed a series of recent deadly attacks on security forces in the northeast, in a video obtained by AFP Monday.

Abubakar Shekau also insisted that he was in “good health” despite an ongoing military offensive aimed at crushing the Islamist insurgent group he heads.

“You have not killed Shekau,” he said in the video distributed through a local intermediary in a similar manner to previous Boko Haram messages.

Seated on a short stool with a kalashnikov rested on his right shoulder, Shekau said Boko Haram was “responsible” for several deadly raids over the past month.

These include attacks on the police and military in the towns of Malam Fatori and Bama, which sparked clashes that killed at least 35 people, according to the military.

The video contained what Shekau claimed was footage of Boko Haram gunmen opening fire on the military in Bama, using heavy weapons mounted on flat-bed trucks.

Shekau also referred to fighting in the towns Baga and Gamboru Ngala near the border with Cameroon, .

The Boko Haram leader has been declared a global terrorist by the United States, which in March put a $7 million (5.3 million euros) bounty on his head.

“I’m challenging Obama,” Shekau said in the video. He voiced similar challenges to French President Francois Hollande and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“They are no match for me,” he proclaimed.

Boko Haram is believed to be made up of different factions, with Shekau leading the most radical Islamist cell.

He has ruled out any dialogue with the government and says he is fighting to create an Islamic state in Nigeria’s north.

The northeast is currently under a state of emergency as the military pursues an offensive seeking to end Boko Haram’s four-year insurgency.

The insurgency is estimated to have claimed more than 3,600 lives since 2009, including killings by the security forces.

Nigeria’s 160 million population is roughly divided between a mainly Christian south and mostly Muslim north. [AFP]