…Theatre Commander
From Dauda R Pam-Maiduguri.
The Theatre Commander, Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK) Maj-Gen. Christopher Musa has said that insurgency, kidnappings and other related crimes in the north east may come to an end this year.
Over 50,800 Boko Haram repentant terrorists and their families, he said, have surrendered to the Nigerian Army in Borno and Yobe states.
The Theatre Commander disclosed this, Friday, in a parley with journalists in Maiduguri, while reeling out strategies to end the war that claimed many lifes and property in the region.
Also reeled out were pictorial evidence of a professional military fight against terrorism, with the neutralization of Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and Boko Haram terrorists this year.
“Our approach of professionalism to end this war is yielding results”, adding that the narratives are fast changing to the excitements of security agencies to end the 13-year war in the six affected states of the north east..
According to him, the morale of officers and soldiers have been raised to meet the deadline of war in Borno, Adamawa, Bauchi, Taraba, Gombe and Yobe states.
Major Gen. Christopher Musa argued that the Army and its Air and Maritime Components alongside other security agencies charged with the responsibility of prosecuting the war in the Northeast; will continue to synergize and warned the troops not to relent; until all the nooks and crannies of the theatre of war are cleared of terrorists and kidnappers.
On the profiling of the repentant terrorists’, he said that their profiling is being carried and none of them is being released into their communities.
“We identify the fighters whenever they surrender and separate them before presenting them to the different camps”,
assuring that none of the combatants will be released until the Federal Government takes the final decision on their respective status
On the death of Abubakar Shekau, the Boko Haram leader, led to serious infight and struggles for new leadership of terrorism and further disclosed that the ISWAP group, with the aid of foreign mercenaries, wanted to coerce the Shekau’s people to join them contrary to their ideology, aims and objectives which led to infighting that spread into the forest and the Lake Chad region.
The Theatre Command Intelligence Coordinator, Col. Obinna Azuikpe, also said that there were 81 attacks of Boko Haram and ISWAP in the first quarter of this year.
“Our troops and other security forces were able to confront the insurgents in the hideouts of forest and Lake Chad region,” he said.
Col. Azuikpe added that troops under Operation Desert Sanity conducted 9,163 patrols, 5,553 ambushes and 1,006 clearance operations. He said a total of 126 Boko Haram and ISWAP were neutralised in recent operations. the TC said the welfare of troops will continue to receive due attention. He said the Army is implementing new measures on troops rotation.
“What we’re seeing with regards to the success stories; if we continue the way we’re doing now, God willing, this year, we will put this (war) to an end”.
