It was yet another bloody weekend in Borno and Yobe states yesterday as Boko Haram struck in two towns, killing scores of people. Bodies littered streets of Maiduguri and Potiskum after yet another failed bid by the insurgents to overrun the Borno State capital and a suicide bombing at the home of a member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Sabo Garbu.
The insurgents, in a renewed attempt to capture Maiduguri, launched attacks from four points in the wee hours of yesterday that left about 100 people dead.
The attacks came a day after Chadian army killed 120 insurgents during a clash on Saturday in Cameroon. According to sources, the insurgents, who engaged troops in a fivehour gunfight, yet again lost their bid to overrun Maiduguri as they were repelled by soldiers, who were assisted by members of the local militia.
Yesterday’s attack on Maiduguri was the second attempt in a week by Boko Haram to seize the Borno State capital. It was gathered that the Boko Haram terrorists who came in from different locations were successfully repelled by the combined efforts of the military, Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and Civilian JTF and with aerial support from the Nigerian Air Force.
The insurgents came in through Molai village on Maiduguri Damboa Road; Ngom village on Maiduguri-Ngala Road; Zabarmari village and Bama Road A member of the Civilian JTF who craved for anonymity, said corpses of the Boko Haram insurgents were seen littering the Maiduguri-Damboa Road. He said: “The insurgents killed some residents of Molai village while on their way to invade Maiduguri but the military and our members successfully repelled the attack.
“I counted over 50 corpses of insurgents apart from those bombed by the aircraft who were burnt beyond recognition. “I think these attacks were as a result of the sacking of the insurgents by Nigerian troops and Cameroonian soldiers from Bama and Gwoza respectively.”
A resident of Gwoza who fled to Maiduguri as a result of the capturing of the town, Alhaji Ahmed Dugshe, said he received a call from his brother who fled to Cameroon that the Cameroonian troops had sacked Boko Haram terrorists from Gwoza town. In Maiduguri, a senior army officer said the militants were “everywhere,” attacking from all four roads leading into the city.
Another officer said hundreds of insurgents, as many as 500, were killed before they fled and many weapons were recovered, including artillery guns and rocket-propelled grenades. Both officers spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not supposed to speak to reporters. Witnesses said some bombs launched from a Nigerian jet fighter killed civilians.
Many homes were hit by bombs, including one in Zannari neighbourhood that killed seven civilians, according to neighbours who requested anonymity for fear of retaliation from the military.
Confirming the attacks on Maiduguri, Director of Defence Information (DDI), Major General Chris Olukolade, in a statement yesterday, said mopping-up operation was ongoing.
The statement, issued by Olukolade, said troops inflicted severe casualty on the fighters while calm has since returned to Maiduguri. Olukolade said weapons and equipment seized from the terrorists include armoured vehicles, two artillery guns and 17 Hilux vehicles. Borno State Governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, has, however, commended youths in the state for teaming up with soldiers to defend Maiduguri from being captured by Boko Haram.
The governor, in a statement by his media aide, Mallam Isa Guzau, said: “I have never been as proud of our youths in Borno State as much as I am today. The youth have since 2013 rose in firm defence of the good people of Borno State, and today, they have once again proved to all of us that they have by playing complementary roles, taken our collective destiny in their hands and we are full of gratitude to them for their sacrifices that cannot be sufficiently rewarded no matter what government does for them by way of compensation or encouragement.”
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) also lauded the military for stopping Boko Haram from overrunning Maiduguri. The party, in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr. Olisa Metuh, said the members of the armed forces had shown exceptional patriotism while risking their lives to protect those of other citizens in ensuring that the nation is rid of the terrorists.
The party condoled with the families of the victims of the attacks, comforted the displaced and the wounded and prayed God to restore enduring peace in the country. Besides Borno, Boko Haram launched another attack in Potiskum where a suicide bomber killed seven persons. Witnesses and a police officer told AFP that they evacuated eight bodies, including the suicide bombers to hospital.” Another report by Reuters said the suicide bomber blew himself up outside the house of a legislator.
The bomber walked up to Garbu, before detonating the explosives, which claimed the lives of eight people. Also at the weekend, Chadian forces killed 120 Boko Haram militants in a battle in the north of neighbouring Cameroon that began when the insurgents attacked its troops. The army said in a statement on Saturday that three Chadian soldiers were killed in the battle.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army is set to inaugurate a new General Court- Martial (GCM) to try 188 officers and soldiers accused of misconduct and negligence of duty that have impaired the ongoing anti-terrorism campaign in the North-East.
The Nigerian Army is set to inaugurate a new General Court-Martial (GCM) to try 188 officers and soldiers accused of misconduct and negligence of duty that have impaired the ongoing antiterrorism campaign in the North-East.
It was gathered from a top military source that a Lieutenant Colonel, three Majors, three Captains, one Sub-Lieutenant and 180 soldiers, will be arraigned this week on offences bordering on disobedience to particular and standing orders, failure to perform military duties, and cowardice.
The source said already, the Army authorities had appointed Brigadier General S. Abdulhameed of the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) Abuja, as the president of the yet-to-be inaugurated GCM. According to the source, who asked not to be named because he was not authorised to speak on the matter, the new GCM will have Lieutenant-Colonel Ukpe Ukpe as the judge advocate while Captain Okonkwo is the lead prosecuting counsel.
The source said the accused officers and soldiers would stand trial in a case to be known as Nigerian Army (NA) vs Lt. Col Enang and others. They are being accused of misconduct in respect of the ongoing counterterrorism operation in the North-East.
“The Army is set to try eight officers and 180 soldiers on offences relating to disobedience to particular and standing orders, failure to perform military duties and cowardice.
“In fact, a fine officer from the DHQ, Brigadier General S. Abdulhameed, has been appointed to head the court-martial. “Actually, the new courtmartial was to be inaugurated on Friday, January 30, but that was no to be. “I think that exercise will happen this week,” the source stated. However, the position of a Brigadier General and some Lieutenant Colonels, who are currently being held by the Army, is not clear.”
The General and his lieutenants are being held in connection with the attack on and takeover of Baga, a town in Borno State, by Boko Haram. It was gathered that the General, who was the Brigade Commander of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) in Baga before it was overran by Boko Haram, is currently being held alongside his field commanders and may be soon tried.
Another source, however, said the Brigade Commander sustained injuries and was receiving treatment at an undisclosed military hospital. Efforts to get official comments from Olukolade, did not yield results, as he neither picked his calls, nor reply a text message sent to his phone.
But he had in a statement on Friday said all officers in key positions of the MNJTF would account for their actions or inactions that led to the fall of Baga.
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