Boko Haram attacks: Shettima, military meet today

BORNO State Governor Kashim Shettima will today chair an extra-ordinary security meeting to discuss the rising wave of attacks by Boko Haram insurgents in the past few weeks in the Northwest State.

The meeting is coming in the wake of plans by troops of the Operation LAFIYA DOLE in conjunction with the state government to relocate residents of Baga to safe locations because of the on-going military operations in the area.

It is also coming on the heels of a warning by the military against insinuations capable of causing panic and displacement in resettled communities in Borno State, the epicentre of the insurgency.

Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, the Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, Operation LAFIYA DOLE, issued the warning in a statement issued in Maiduguri yesterday.

The colonel said that the army had received reports indicating that some unscrupulous elements were instigating residents of Bama, Dikwa and Monguno to abandon their homes and relocate to Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camps in the state.

According to him, inhabitants of the affected communities have no reason to abandon their homes as such insinuations are instigated for undisclosed reasons.

He said the army and other security agencies would shed more light on the situation at the extraordinary security meeting to be  conveyed by Governor Shettima.

He said: “We will like to further state that there is no basis for the people of Bama, Dikwa and Monguno to vacate their respective communities.

“However, troops of Operation LAFIYA DOLE in conjunction with Borno State government are working toward relocating residents of Baga to safer locations in view of the ongoing military operations in the area.

“Members of the public are advised to remain calm as the military is in firm control to guarantee their safety and security. We will like to warn that any attempt to cause further panic through false alarm would be viewed very seriously,’’ Nwachukwu said.

Governor Shettima had called for a security meeting scheduled for Monday  (today)  to address the resurgence of Boko Haram insurgents’ attacks in the past few weeks in the state.

Statistics by the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) showed that 2, 046 displaced persons were profiled at IDPs camp in Maiduguri in the past few days due to insurgents’ attack in Baga, northern Borno.

Air Force strikes insurgents in Baga

The Nigerian Air Force yesterday said scores of Boko Haram terrorists have been neutralised at their hideouts near Baga, in the northern part of Borno State.

A statement by Air Force spokesperson Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola said the insurgents were attacked with Alpha jets, following an intelligence reports confirming their presence in the area.

Air Commodore Daramola said: “The Air Task Force (ATF) of Operation LAFIYA DOLE has neutralised several Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters at their hideout near Baga in Northern Borno State.

“The attack was conducted yesterday, 29 December 2018, after a Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platform spotted the terrorists assembled under some trees around the Fish Dam near Baga.

“The ATF therefore dispatched an Alpha Jet aircraft to attack the location.

“The aircraft multiple attacks pass, killing several of the terrorists and causing serious injuries to others. The surviving terrorists were mopped-up in subsequent follow on strikes.”