Troops of the Nigerian Army currently battling Boko Haram in northeast Nigeria Tuesday rescued 350 persons and killed 167 insurgents in separate operations.
The rescue of the captives followed a successful raid of 17 notorious villages where the insurgents had their camps during which five militants were killed, officials said.
Also, Nigerian troops and Cameroonian soldiers killed 162 insurgents, bringing the number of Islamist militants killed in raids to 167.
Spokesman of Nigeria Army, Colonel Sani Kukasheka Usman, who made this known in a statement, said the troops in the frontlines had waged a series of successful campaigns against the insurgents.
He said: “In their efforts, troops of 7 Division Garrison, 112 Battalion, Army Headquarters Support Group and elements of Armed Forces Special Forces conducted a joint fighting patrol at suspected Boko Haram terrorists’ enclaves in Gajibo, Maula, Gamai, Gamare, Maiwa, Warsale, Tangli, Tushi, Sowa, Hasanari, Changuwa, Malamaja and Marya towns in Mafa and Dikwa Local Governments areas.
“In the encounter, five Boko Haram terrorists were killed, an AK-47 rifle, 10 motorcycles and one logistic truck belonging to the terrorists were recovered. The troops also rescued 350 people held hostages by the terrorists. Among those rescued were five girls abducted from Cameroon.
“Yesterday, one of the patrol teams of 254 Task Force Battalion carried out a clearance operation at Kubwa village, Borno State, in which they arrested two suspected Boko Haram terrorists hiding among the community,” Colonel Usman said.
“Another patrol team of the same unit carried out clearance operation at Yakshari village, off Wajiroko along Ajigin-Talala road and proceeded to Korode. It was here also that some suspected Boko Haram elements, on sighting the troops, ran and abandoned six motorcycles and beans looted from the inhabitants of the area. The same team also recovered 21 motorcycles and Boko Haram terrorists’ flag at Korode abandoned by the fleeing terrorists.
“Similarly, a civilian vehicle encountered an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) at the area which badly affected it. The troops also discovered another IED at Mauvi village which was safely detonated.”
According to him, in order to boost troops morale, the General Officer Commanding 7 Division, Brigadier General VO Ezugwu, had visited 26 Task force Brigade and commended troops of 121 Task Force Battalion for the successful joint clearance operations at Kirawa and Ngoshe, with assistance from Cameroonian forces.
Meanwhile, Cameroonian Communication Minister, Issa Bakary, Tuesday revealed that Cameroonian and Nigerian troops have taken a key base of Boko Haram in northern Nigeria, killing 162 insurgents.
He said in Yaounde that the assault against the insurgents in Goshe, near the Cameroonian border, lasted from Thursday to Sunday.
Bakary said the allied troops destroyed four artisanal mine factories, seizing mines, suicide bomber vests, ammunition and other weaponry.
The minister said the troops also set a Boko Haram training centre on fire: “Hundreds of people held hostage by the terrorists were also released.
“Cameroon lost two soldiers to land mines in the assault,’’ he said.
Boko Haram: UN releases $58m to assist IDPs in 2015
The UN has released $58 million to assist 2.4 million people affected by Boko Haram-related violence in 2015, a document obtained by NAN shows.
The document made available to NAN in Abuja by Ms Kate Pond, Public Information Officer in the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
It states that the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) allocated the amount from March 2015 to February 4, 2016.
“Since 2015, the Emergency Relief Coordinator has released more than $58 million from CERF for life-saving assistance in response to Boko Haram-related violence.
“The sum of $27.2 million was allocated in March 2015 to assist more than 1.6 million internally displaced persons, refugees, returnees and host communities from Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria.
“An additional $31 million was provided in late 2015 and early 2016 for live-saving humanitarian response for more than 700,000 affected people in the Lake Chad Basin region,” it said.
It also explained that with the support of CERF’s rapid response funds, humanitarian partners had been providing life-saving assistance and protection for the most vulnerable people.
-Leadership