More soldiers were said to have been killed in the exchange of gunfire between them and members of the militant religious sect, “Boko Haram”, yesterday in Maiduguri, Borno State.
Military authorities refused to confirm or deny the story last night but promised to brief the press today on the situation.
But highly placed sources told THISDAY that no fewer than three more soldiers lost their lives yesterday.
This, if confirmed, will bring to six the total number of soldiers killed since hostilities began in Bauchi last Sunday.
And as the military bombardment of the Maiduguri stronghold of the leader of the religious sect continued yesterday, the death toll in the uprising has been on the increase.
There is also great apprehension in the city as many are now afraid that the fight between the soldiers and the fundamentalists expected to end a few hours after it began on Tuesday on the base of Mohammed Yusuf, the leader of “Boko Haram”, was still on 24 hours later.
Security forces had moved into Maiduguri and begun attacking Yusuf's base on Tuesday, shelling it with heavy weapons and exchanging gunfire with the militants.
About 1,000 people are said to be inside the Maiduguri enclave, according to the military.
The officer commanding the operation, Col. Ben Ahanotu, told the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) yesterday that the militants were well-armed and had been keeping up a steady stream of fire.
He said there were at least 250 armed men guarding Yusuf's home, which is also the headquarters of the sect.
Ahanotu also said some of the fundamentalists might have come from neighbouring Chad and Niger.
One Maiduguri resident, Adamu Yari, told Reuters news agency that soldiers and the police were combing the whole city, searching house to house for Boko Haram followers.
THISDAY gathered that the death toll in the crisis may have risen to over 500 as there were both military and civilian casualties with the fundamentalists being depleted by the heavy bombardment by the military.
The only public mortuary in the state belonging to the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) is said to be filled to the brim by last night.
There is the fear of a possible outbreak of cholera as corpses continue to litter the streets of Maiduguri.
A visit to the two main public hospitals, UMTH and the ultra-modern state hospital, which is not equipped with a morgue, showed that corpses are dumped on the bare floor without any cooling system in place to prevent decomposition.
The state Governor Ali Modu Sheriff called on residents in the conflict areas to either relocate or stay indoors at all times to avoid endangering their lives.
In a press statement signed by his Director of Press, Alhaji Usman Chiroma, the governor identified the areas as Floor Mills, Kasuwan Shanu, Kumshe, Kofa Biyu State Lowcost and Gamboru Police Station.
He said the sect members have continued to use civilians as human shields against attack from the military.
But Yusuf’s deputy is said to have been caught on Tuesday when the military bombarded the stronghold of his leader.
He is said to be in the custody of the police who are currently interrogating him to extract information from him.
Some people wearing long beards in the town have started shaving them off as it has become the target for the military in their bid to tract other members of the sect.
Many members of “Boko Haram” are known to be wearing long beards and short trousers.
Though the curfew in Maiduguri is from dusk to dawn, but many parts of the town remained deserted as the few that are bold enough to come unto the streets are frequently harassed and intimidated by the military men who have cordoned off all the major roads in town.
Also, the number of the displaced persons has gone up with unconfirmed reports saying it is now nearing 10,000.
It was learnt that people living around the stronghold of the fundamentalists had to flee the heavy military bombardment to more serene places.
Military and police barracks have now become refugee centres as residents continue to flee for refuge.
It was gathered that some military ambulance and trucks belonging to the Nigeria Security and Civil Service Corps (NSCDC) are being deployed to ferry both military and civilian casualties.
In Kano, the state Urban Development Agency (KNUPDA) yesterday demolished the residence and mosque of Mallam Salisu Wudil alias “Aljasawayi” who is said to be the leader of a fundamentalist group in Wudil town in the state.
The demolition was on the directive of the state government.
The team leader of the state urban development agency, which led the demolition, Mallam Uba Usman, who is also the deputy director, development control of the agency, told THISDAY that government decided to take the action to ensure peace and stability in the state following the militant activities of the cleric.
Copies of papers, Arabic inscriptions, electrical appliance and others used by the fled leader and his families were all over the place after the demolition.
Police Area Commandant of Kano Zone, ACP Ibrahim Mohammed, told reporters that “Wudil is calm and peaceful, while people go about their normal activities without any fear as the situation is being controlled by security agencies.”
THISDAY also sighted soldiers deployed in police station where the clashes occurred between the fundamentalists and the police, resulting in the arrest of over 53 fundamentalists.
Addressing reporters at the scene of the demolished mosque and residence of the fundamentalists, Chairman of the Wudil Local Government Area, Alhaji Musa Adamu Darki, said on the eve of the crisis in Bauchi, Bauchi State, last Sunday night, the fundamentalists numbering over 300 gathered in Wudil to hold the Magrib prayer before the police was alerted about their activities.
Over 100 riot policemen and soldiers have already taken over the security of the town. They are led by Mohammed who relocated his office to Wudil Police Station.
But non-indigenes in Wudil are seen leaving the town for fear of their safety.
Special Adviser to Kano State Governor Ibrahim Shekarau on Inter Community Relations, Alhaji Mikhail Adebayo, who addressed the non-indigenes at the police station of Wudil assured them of their safety.
Death toll in respect of the crisis has risen to five in the state while the police have also arrested 52 fundamentalists.
Meanwhile, the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Mohammed Ndume, has berated President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua for travelling out of the country at this period, which he described as critical.
He also blamed the on-going crisis on the Federal Government, which, according to him, had failed the people of the country as it is not sensitive to the needs of Nigeria.
President Yar’Adua had left for Brazil on Tuesday on a three-day state visit. Speaking to State House Correspondents in Abuja shortly before he left, the President had said the crisis was not all about inter-religious skirmishes.
He said security agencies were on top of the situation and that by yesterday, the remaining insurgents would have been subdued and peace would have completely returned to the affected states.
Yar’Adua had said: “We have the situation under control now and I believe by the end of today (yesterday) everything would have taken shape. I have been monitoring this situation in the last few days. By yesterday, the situation in Bauchi State had been contained with completely and the crisis in Kano and Potiskum has also been dealt with.
“What we have now is a situation in Borno State where the leader of the so-called Taliban group is residing and where most of them have migrated from all the Northern states to go, prepare and declare the holy war. We are going to launch an operation, the main operation with immediate effect.”
Ndume said the Federal Government led by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had failed Nigerians in the last 10 years and had given the disgruntled elements like “Boko Haram” the moral justification to attack government and governmental institutions.
He claimed that in the last 10 years, the federal government had violated Section 14 subsection 2b of the constitution, which stipulates that the main function of government is to provide security for the people.
Ndume lamented that instead of providing security and succour to Nigerians, the people of the country were thrown into despair and perpetual want which, he said was an elixir for violence.
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