Boko Haram Kills Two in Attack Near Chibok

Boko Haram jihadists have killed two people in an attack on a village in northeast Nigeria near the town of Chibok, residents and a militia official told AFP Tuesday.

Boko Haram Raids Village Near Chibok in Borno State

Reports reaching DAILY POST from Maiduguri, the Borno state capital said, Boko Haram terrorists have invaded Korongilim village near Chibok local government area of the state, where they burnt down all the houses in the village.

Boko Haram Slaughter Scores In Mafa, Borno State

Dozens of people have been killed in an attack by suspected Boko Haram militants in north-eastern Nigeria, officials and witnesses say. Gunmen rampaged through the village of Azaya Kura in the Mafa area in Borno state, killing at least 45 people.

3 Army Officers, 13 Soldiers To Be Court Martialed Over Abducted Chibok Girls

The Nigerian Army has concluded arrangements to arraign 16 soldiers over the April 14, 2014, abduction of over 200 students of the Government Secondary School, Chibok in Borno State.

Three of the soldiers are officers while the remaining 13 soldiers belong to other ranks.
Our correspondent gathered in Abuja on Monday that barring any last minute change, they would appear before the General Court Martial at the Maxwell Khobe Military Cantonment, Rukuba, Jos in Plateau State after the Sallah holidays.

The officers are Lieutenant Col. A. O. Ojo, Capt. O. O. Ogunrinde, and 2nd Lieutenant V.I. Godknows.
The 16 are among 117 soldiers facing a GCM convened by the General Officer Commanding 1 Division of the Army in Kaduna, Maj.Gen. K. C. Osuji, on August 6, 2014.

A source said their trial would take place at the headquarters of the 3rd Armoured Division, Rukuba in Jos for security reasons.
The GCM panel comprises Col. J.J. Ogunlade (President); Col. J. O. Sokoya, Col. M. Kadiri, Col. M. W. Abubakar, Col. A. A. Bamgbose, Col. A. Garba and Col E.M. Albara.
Lt. Colonels B. Garke and O. S. Obot are the waiting members of the panel which has Captain A. Mohammed as the judge advocate and Lt. G. B. Suleiman as the liaison officer.

Investigations on Monday revealed that Ojo, who was the Unit Commander, in Biu, was summoned to the GCM in relation with the conflict in the number of girls said to have been abducted by Boko Haram insurgents and those rescued at the time of the incident.

The officer is also being charged for alleged failure to reinforce the Chibok community when the incident occurred.
It was gathered that the officers were being charged for failure to perform military duty, an offence that attracts
a maximum of two years’ imprisonment.

A source, who confided in our correspondent said that the Lt. Colonel had stated that the number he gave was not the one that was used in a statement by the Defence Headquarters on the reported rescue of some of the abducted girls.

The said statement was later withdrawn.
The source said, “The Lt. Colonel is being charged for allegedly giving information without verification, negligent performance of military duty and not going to reinforce the place where the incident took place. The charge attracts a maximum of two years’ imprisonment.”

He also said that Ojo had not completely taken over from his predecessor and had complained about the number of men and equipment on the ground when the abduction took place two days after his arrival in Biu for the mission.

It was stated that the shortage of men was shown by the fact that only the 2nd Lt. and 13 soldiers were in Chibok in spite of the fact that the place had a heavy presence of insurgents.

It was gathered that the other soldiers led by Godknows were on duty at the headquarters of the Chibok Local Government Area on the day of the
incident.

Another source told our correspondent that the Army was not notified of the examinations that were going on in the school.
The source said that a statement by the Principal of the School, Asabe Kwambura, corroborated the soldiers’
claim.

Investigations revealed that the soldiers left their location in Chibok to lay in ambush when they received a report that insurgents were planning to attack them on the night the schoolgirls were seized.

They were said to have lost a soldier during the face-off with the Boko Haram members.
The source said, “Only Godknows and 13 soldiers were on duty in Chibok. They were not stationed within the school. No soldier was stationed in the school and they didn’t know that the school was in session.
“Nobody notified these people that the girls were having an examination in the school. Even the principal admitted in her statement that the soldiers were not notified.
“They were told that their camp was about to be attacked so they went out to lay in ambush for insurgents. One of the soldiers died.
“But I can confirm to you that the Army has concluded preparations to arraign them.”

The abduction of the schoolgirls sparked global outrage with world leaders calling on the terrorist group and the Federal Government to ensure their safe release.

  - Punch

Parents Of Abducted Chibok Girls Give Up Hope, Ready To 'Sacrifice' Daughters To End Terrorism

Parents of the abducted Chibok School girls have told President Jonathan and the Nigerian Army to go ahead and end Boko Haram, even if it endangers the lives of the girls.

They said they are ready to turn their daughters into sacrificial lambs, if it will end insurgency and the terror that Boko Haram has being carrying out.

Four months after the captivity of their daughters, the parents are now ready for the military to invade the Sambisa forest no matter the outcome.

Chairman of the Chibok community in Abuja, Hosea Tsambido, stated that he had been in contact with the parents who had given up hope of their daughters returning alive and are only asking that the government return with their bodies so that they can be given proper burial.

He stated this in Abuja during the protest by members of the #BringBackOurGirls the movement to mark 130 days after over 200 girls were abducted from the Government Girls’ Secondary School, Chibok.

Tsambido stated that the Chibok culture requires parents and family members of missing persons to bury their loved ones, if they have been missing for over four months, adding that after three to four months the families must perform the burial ritual and assume that the persons are dead to enable them move on with their lives.

His words: “Culturally in our area, when our child or a person is missing for three to four months and you do not hear anything about the person, we will arrange for the burial ceremony and to take it as if the person is dead and we will perform the burial ritual and forget about the person and try to forge ahead with life.
“Now the parents are saying that it is better for them to bring the girls back, even if it means the corpses so that they will bury them properly.
“Let the girls be the sacrificial lambs, that is what they told me. I spoke with them last night on the issue and
their opinion is that the army should go into Sambisa.

If some of the girls are saved, die or abscond, so be it than all this trauma that the parents are going through
right now.
“They are saying that let the government go into the forest and bring back the corpses of the children so that they can bury them properly.

The leader of the BBOG movement, Oby Ezekwesili, has asked the government to tell the group and Nigerians what is being done to rescue the girls after 130 days.
Her words: “This is 130 days after they were abducted and we are no where closer as to knowing the fate of those girls and having any information on their rescue.
“The challenge that we have is the fact that we are told that a rescue operation is going on but when you connect the dots in the statements that are made, it leaves you within the logical frame without any precise sense of a rescue operation because in the case of abduction, what we know around the world is that people try to rescue through a military operation or they try to rescue through negotiation and and they try to sometimes have a mix of those two options.

“Each time that we have listened to statements from government, including from the President, it has seemed to dismiss any of these options and so that leaves us asking, what exactly is going on 130 days since these girls were abducted.

The Nation

Fight Against Terrorism and Insurgency: Nigerian Govt. Orders 40 Attack Helicopters From US, Russia

The Federal Government in a determined effort to eliminate terrorism by routing insurgents from their hideouts in parts of the North East and North West once and for all, has placed purchase orders for 40 helicopters for attacks and transportation from the United States (US) and Russia.

Reliable security sources within the Presidency revealed this to some journalists  Friday that some of the aircraft will arrive in the country as early as next month while the remaining will be received certainly before the end of the year to boost the Nigerian Air Force (NAF).

According to the source, the arrival of the weaponry before the end of the year, will be a game changer as it will help to ensure successful execution of the counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency operations, especially against Boko Haram Islamic Sect.

"Some military and other security forces are currently frustrated about their inability to storm the notorious Sambisa Forest where Boko Haram militants are keeping the abducted Chibok secondary school girls and also serving as operational headquarters of the group", the source said.

Details to follow

Courtesy:
ThisDay Newspaper

Central Bank of Nigeria Orders Banks, Others To Donate to Terror Support Fund

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed banks and discount houses to donate to the Victims Support Fund Committee, set up by President Goodluck Jonathan to raise funds to assist victims of Boko Haram insurgency, which has killed at least 2,053 civilians in the first half of this year in 95 attacks.

The 26-member committee, chaired by former Minister of Defence, Lt.- Gen. T. Y. Danjuma, was inaugurated last week by Jonathan in Abuja.
The directive, which was “more or less like an appeal,” was given in Lagos yesterday by CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, at a breakfast meeting with banks’ managing directors and those of other financial institutions.

New Telegraph had exclusively reported yesterday that the CBN governor summoned the bank chiefs to a meeting without disclosing any agenda.
At the meeting, which held at the CBN new head office complex, Emefiele was said to have told the bank chiefs that President Goodluck Jonathan had appealed to him to seek the support of the financial institutions to contribute to the terror support fund.
One of the participants at the meeting confided in New Telegraph that the bank chiefs told Emefiele that for such funds to be donated, they would have to seek approvals from their respective boards.

The bank chiefs who were said to have been looking forward to the meeting, being Emefiele’s first breakfast forum with them, were said to be disappointed, as they had thought it was issues in the industry that would be discussed. “The meeting was a bloody waste of time.
We thought the meeting was called to discuss the issues and challenges facing the industry but to our surprise, it was basically to discuss Chibok and terrorist issues,” the source said.

Emefiele’s predecessor, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, had also coaxed banks to donate to the Disaster Relief Fund. Last week, President Goodluck Jonathan had written a letter to the National Assembly seeking the approval to borrow $1 billion to fight Boko Haram, which has killed about 15,000 people in the five years of its campaign of terror.

At the inauguration of the Victims Support Fund Committee, which happened on the day his letter to the National Assembly seeking approval to borrow $1 billion was read to lawmakers, Jonathan had told the members to mobilise collective efforts and resources in support of terror victims.

He urged Nigerians and non-Nigerians, individuals and cooperate bodies, to give generously to the fund.
Besides Danjuma and former Guaranty Trust Bank (GTB) Plc. Managing Director, Mr. Fola Adeola, who is the deputy chairman, other members of the committee include Alhaji Mohammed Indimi, Alhaji Abdulsamad I. Rabiu, Alhaji Sani Dauda, Mrs. Folorunsho Alakija and Mr. Cosmas Maduka.

Also on the committee are former Managing Director, Zenith Bank Plc., Mr. Jim Ovia, Group Chief Executive, Oando Plc., Mr. Wale Tinubu and Director General, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Alhaji Sani Sidi.

New Telegraph

Boko Haram Blows Up Gamboru-Ngala Bridge Linking Borno and Gombe States

Suspected members of the outlawed Boko Haram sect  Sunday blew up an highway bridge on Maiduguri-Biu-Gombe road.

The bridge was damaged  early Sunday morning.

It was gathered that the insurgents  planted an Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) under the bridge which   exploded and  destroyed remarkable portions of the bridge.

It would be recalled that most part of the highway linking Maiduguri-Biu-Gombe has been taken over by the insurgents forcing  many motorists to take the longer route of Maiduguri-Damaturu-Potiskum road,  then linking up with little motor-able road to Gombe and oftentimes have to travel back to the southern part of the troubled Northeastern state of Borno.

The destruction left motorists and passengers stranded in the early hours of Sunday.

According to one of the residents of  the  area, Mallam Musa Yakubu a loud bang was heard at about 2am on Sunday when people were asleep.

Courtesy:
ThisDay Newspaper

Boko Haram Claims Responsibility for Abuja, Lagos Bomb Attacks

Leader of Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau, has said that his group was responsible for the bomb attacks
on fuel depot on June 25 in Lagos and another in Abuja the same day.
Reuters reports Shekau as claiming that he ordered the attacks.
"A bomb went off in Lagos. I ordered the bomber who went and detonated it," the reports said Authorities said the blasts on Creek road were an
accident caused by a gas canister, but the security sources told Reuters that was a coverup meant to avoid panic in the southwestern city of 21 million people. At least two people were killed.

"You said it was a fire incident. Well, if you hide it from people you can't hide it from Allah," Shekau says in the
video, which according to AFP shows him next to at least 10 gunmen in front of two armoured personnel
carriers and two pickup trucks.
A confirmed attack by Boko Haram would be a cause for concern. Lagos is both an international business
hub and a usually peaceful but at times uneasy melting pot of ethnicities from the mostly Christian south and Muslim north that have fought street battles in the past.

The target of the Lagos bombs was a fuel depot. Had it gone up, it could have caused a massive chain
explosion and disrupted Nigeria's mostly imported fuel supply.
Security sources say it may have been the work of a group or individual inspired by Boko Haram. Shekau
has been known to claim attacks suspected to be the work of another Islamist group or a criminal gang.
Shekau gets the Governor of Lagos State wrong, taunting Adams Oshiomole, who is in fact the Governor the southern Edo State, the agency reported.

Courtesy:
ThisDay Newspaper

Boko Haram: 63 Abducted Women Escape, Slain Colonel Abubakar Shonba Identified

About 63 out of the 68 women that were abducted two weeks ago from three villages of Borno State by Boko Haram gunmen have escaped from captivity and made their way back to their homes, witnesses and security officials have said.

Villagers within the hinterlands of Damboa local government area of Borno where the abduction was carried out revealed this to LEADERSHIP yesterday.

“I have just received an alert from my colleagues in Damboa area that about 63 of the abducted women and girls had made it back home. They took the bold step when their abductors moved out to carry out an operation,” said Abbas Gava, an official of the vigilante group.

“We don’t have the details of their escape yet, but we believe God gave them the opportunity at the time the insurgents came in their large numbers to attack Damboa where about 12 soldiers, five policemen, over 50 Boko Haram members and unspecified number of civilians were killed yesterday (Saturday).

“If the information I have is something to go by, we still have five women and girls, among them a nursing mother, that are missing for now,” he said.

A top security officer who preferred not to be mentioned in this report told LEADERSHIP in an interview that half of the women who escaped made it to their homes while others who were found wandering in the bushes near Adamawa State were now in the custody of soldiers in Gulak town.

“It is authentic that the women were able to break out of captivity and escaped back to their homes,” said the officer. “As a matter of fact, the women escaped when the Boko Haram gunmen were out to attack the military base in Damboa. We understand further that the few men left to guard them took time off to rest due to the fatigue of fasting and the women sneaked from behind the fenced building and ran to freedom.”

LEADERSHIP had also gathered that the Borno State police command as well as the military authority who had denied any abduction of the 90 women were trying to conceal information about the escape in order not to be embarrassed.

But feelers from the highest police and military command in Abuja indicated that the security chiefs in Maiduguri had been directed to go to Gulak in Adamawa today (Monday) in order to bring back the women being camped by soldiers there.

On June 22, it was reported that at least 60 women and girls were abducted in a Borno village by gunmen suspected to be members of Boko Haram.

The abduction took place in a village called Kummabza, a farming community not more than 25km away from Lassa town in Askira-Uba local government area of Borno State.

Security officials initially denied the reports that the abduction took place.

But later on, LEADERSHIP learnt, the police mandated a team, at the instance of the Borno State governor, Kashim Shettima, to verify the said abduction. They did, and eventually came up with a figure of 71 women and girls.

The police and the military had described as a hoax an earlier report that some 20 Fulani women were abducted by Boko Haram at a nomads’ settlement called Garkin-Fulani, even as some junior police officers had reliably informed reporters that the abductors were asking for some number of cows in place of every kidnapped Fulani woman in their custody.

Slain Colonel in Borno Attack, Abubakar Shonba Identified

The identity of the army Colonel who died during the encounter between the soldiers, policemen, vigilante group and Boko Haram insurgents in Damboa local government area of Borno State on Saturday has been exclusively revealed to LEADERSHIP.

A top military source confided in LEADERSHIP last night that the name of the gallant soldier who lost his life during the bloody encounter is Col Abubakar Shonba.

According to the source, the late Shonba was the commanding officer 101 battalion, Damboa, in Borno State.

Leadership Newspaper

53 Terrorists Killed in Raid on Bornu Hideout, Arrest Suspected Gun Runner- Defence HQTRS

The Defence Headquarters said on Friday that no fewer than 50 suspected terrorists died during a raid on a makeshift camp used by terrorists in Miyanti and Bulungu, Borno State.

In a statement posted on its website, the Defence Headquarters said 53 terrorists died in the encounter, while the troops lost two of their men, and five others received injuries.

The statement said a fuel dump used for storing fuel, vehicles, including Toyota Hilux trucks, and seven motorcycles were destroyed in the raid.

It also said 15 rifles, 11 machine guns and ammunition were captured by the troops.

The statement read, “In a separate encounter around Duguri, near the Nigeria–Niger border, troops of the Multinational Joint Task Force stormed a terrorists’ hideout in a raid.

“The troops recovered 18 rifles, five general purpose machine guns, 25 hand grenades and IED making materials.’’

It said a suspected gunrunner was apprehended and was being interrogated in connection with the seizures.

It said the suspect was arrested during a cordon-and-search operation by troops.

The statement said 15 other suspects were being detained in Abuja after a raid that led to the recovery of seven rifles, pistols, swords and other weapons.

It said military operations to track armed gangs would be sustained in various locations.

On the Wednesday’s explosion in Abuja, the statement said more explosives were seized from two suspects believed to have coordinated the bombing of Emab Shopping Plaza in Wuse.

It added, “Bystanders at the scene of the explosion alerted soldiers on patrol to the two suspects, who were speeding off on a power bike.

“The soldiers pursued the fleeing suspects and shot at one who fell off the bike with his bag, while the rider escaped through the crowd.

“The bag recovered from the suspect was later confirmed to contain a package of IED and other accessories.

The statement said the accessories included stop clock, mobile phones and other materials used for setting off explosives.

The statement explained that the suspect, who was shot, later died in a hospital while yelling, “People will die! People will die!”

Courtesy:
Punch Newspaper

Boko Haram Writes Chibok Community, Threatens Fresh Attack; Abduction Committee Submits Report This Week

THERE was panic in Chibok Local Government Area of Borno State, where over 200 female students of Government Girls’ Secondary School were abducted by Islamic militants, Boko Haram, following a letter purportedly written to the people of Chibok by the sect members, informing them of their plans to attack the local government again.

A top local government official in Chibok town, who did not want his name published, revealed this to newsmen in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, on Monday.

According to him, when the letter purportedly written by the sect was presented to the police, residents were assured of maximum protection.

“Yet, the police are also complaining of shortage of fuel for their vehicles, as  petrol was not being sold in the local government for fear that the insurgents may use it to burn houses,” he said.

According to the source, the local government had also assured the security operatives that they would buy fuel and keep it with them for their use.

It was also gathered that the council had asked the security agents to ask for reinforcement, as the number of security operatives in the area might not be sufficient to face the insurgents.

“Whenever Boko Haram tells you that they are coming, they never fail to come. Our fears now is that, we don’t know when and how they are going to come, but our people are in great fear.

“We are calling for prayers, as well as on government to provide adequate security in Chibok,” he said.

Abduction: Committee to submit report to Jonathan this week

The report on the abduction of over 200 girls in Chibok will be submitted to President Goodluck Jonathan by the fact-finding committee, this week.

This was made known on Monday by the coordinator of National Information Centre (NIC), Mr Mike Omeri, while addressing newsmen in Abuja.

Omeri, however, appealed to Nigerians and international communities for more understanding and patience towards the effort of the government to rescue the girls.

In another development, Omeri revealed that Nigerian troops had apprehended seven terrorists who infiltrated Maiduguri, Borno State capital, to carry out terrorist missions.

He said in the course of interrogation, the terrorists said they were asked to carry out some bombings and sabotage activities in furtherance of directives of the leadership of the terrorist group.

The National Orientation Agency (NOA) boss, however, said further investigations, patrol and surveillance had been stepped up by the troops.

Speaking on the kidnap of a construction worker in Plateau, Omeri said the victim, who had since been released, is a Lebanese national as against media reportage, labelling him a Briton.

He said that the Lebanese was abducted by some armed bandits in Lantang, Plateau State, on Sunday night, but was freed through the efforts of security forces in Angwan Bala in Wase Local Government Area of the state.

Tribune Newspaper

Borno State Cattle Breeders Association Says Purported Abduction Of Fulani Women Untrue

The Borno State chapter of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, known by the acronym MACBAN, on Thursday, denied media reports that Fulani women were abducted by Boko Haram members in Borno last week.

Alhaji Amadu Musa, who is Chairman of the MACBAN in Borno State, in an interview with newsmen in Maiduguri, the state capital, said the reported abduction of 20 Fulani women was “not true.”

“We need to tell the world that there is nothing like that. All (of) our women and girls are (safe and) intact. It takes us this long to respond because; we made series of consultations to avoid issuing conflicting statements that will generate tension.

“Though our people are nomads who frequently move in search of pasture, I have representatives in all the 27 local government areas of Borno State. We have lamido’s and Ardo’s in all localities. We took the time to consult all of them, and there was no reported incident of abduction. I believe the whole furor is the creation of some people,” Alhaji Amadu Musa said in his talks with reporters.

He added that, “our representatives in all towns and villages near Chibok, met on Thursday at Askira Uba, and none of the officials had any incident of abduction in his domain. We equally crosschecked with our people coming back with their cows, and families, to the extreme northern part of Nigeria from (the) southern part of the country, and confirmed that all are well,” Alhaji Amadu Musa concluded.

SR

Boko Haram Abducts 20 More Women Near Chibok

Suspected Boko Haram militants have abducted at least 20 women close to where 200 schoolgirls were kidnapped in northern Nigeria, eyewitnesses say.

The women were loaded onto vans at gunpoint and driven away to an unknown location in Borno state, they add.

The army has not commented on the incident, which occurred on the nomadic Garkin Fulani settlement on Thursday.

The Nigerian military has faced mounting criticism for failing to stop militant attacks in the north-east.

Despite a state of emergency in place in the region, residents say the army is largely inactive or even absent, allowing the Boko Haram militants to continue their attacks.

'Too late'

The latest incident occurred close to where more than 200 schoolgirls were snatched from the remote Chibok village near the Cameroonian border on 14 April.

A member of a local vigilante group set up to resist such attacks said that in addition to the women, the militants also seized three men who had tried to stop the abduction.

"We tried to go after them when the news got to us about three hours later, but the vehicles we have could not go far, and the report came to us a little bit late," Alhaji Tar said.

Source:
BBC

Boko Haram Kills 34 in Fresh Attacks in Bornu State

TERRORISTS have raided three villages and killed those they accused of being anti-Boko Haram vigilantes in Borno State, according to the British Broadcasting Corporation.

While the BBC reported that more than 30 people were killed in the early hours of Friday, other sources put the casualty figure at 34.

Residents from two of the villages that came under attack said militants had arrived in a convoy and gathered the men of the community together.

They accused them of being members of vigilante groups and killed them all, one villager from Moforo in Marte district who escaped across the border to Cameroon told the BBC Hausa Service.

They then burnt down all the shops in the market, leaving the villagers destitute, he said.

Correspondents say that most villages have formed vigilante groups to try to protect their communities from militant attacks.

A resident of Kimba village in Biu district said the villagers contacted the security forces to alert them to their attack, but were told it was not an area under military control so they could not be helped.

The military has not commented on the allegation.

A local Mallam Umar Kimba told Saturday Tribune in Maiduguri, on Friday, that everybody in the village had fled to seek refuge in Sabon Gari while others fled to Mandara, Girau and Biu. According to him, the attackers,who came on motorcycles on Thursday night started firing sporadically before setting the town ablaze.

He added that, as they were firing, they were calling on youths in the village to come out and join in the jihad against the government of infidel and corrupt politicians. “When nobody went out to meet them they started burning the houses and those who hide in their houses started coming out and running to safe heaven, but the attackers fired at the people. I left Sabon Gari this morning but we have taken the wounded to hospital in Biu before I left.”

He also said what baffled them was that, there were military formation around that area but wondered how the insurgents managed to bypass all the military and attacked the village.

“They did not touch the house of the village head and security operatives came only when they had burnt everything and chased everybody out of the village.” he said.

About 25 men were killed in Moforo, another eight men in Kimbi. It is not known if there were casualties from a raid early on Friday on Kabrihu village near the Sambisa forest.

Source:
Nigerian Tribune