Outrage In Military Circles Over Plan To Court Martial Lt. Colonel, 37 Others

SOME soldiers and officers are said to be outraged and bitter over the decision of the General Court Martial, convened by the Army authorities, to try a Lieutenant-Colonel (names withheld) and 37 soldiers for mutiny.

Nigerian Troops Back From 'Tactical Manoeuvre' To Cameroon, Deployed To Another Counterterrorism Operation

Residents of Mubi confirmed that Nigerian troops numbering up to 480, were seen on arrival from Maroua, most of them looking haggard and wearing tattered clothing.

They were ferried back to Nigeria by military trucks, according to witnesses.
The soldiers supposedly fled a Boko Haram rampage in the border town of Gamboru when they came under superior firepower, but the Defence Headquarters in Abuja said on Monday the troops were “charging through the borders in a tactical manoeuvre”.

Spokesman for the DHQ, Major General Chris Olukolade also confirmed yesterday that the troops were back but declined to state their location.
“Yes they are in the country but I will not confirm their location,” he said.

On Monday, Cameroonian army spokesman Lt Col Didier Badjek said the Nigerian soldiers who crossed the
border were disarmed and accommodated at a school in Maroua.

Nigerian military authorities said later that following talks with Cameroon military “the issues have been sorted out. Subsequently, the troops are on their way back to join their unit in Nigeria.”

In Mubi, witnesses said the soldiers were conveyed back yesterday in batches by military trucks, but it was not clear whether the trucks transported them all the way from Maroua.
“At first, residents panicked before but they soon discovered they were Nigerian soldiers,” a resident told Daily Trust.

Another resident told the BBC Hausa of how they saw the returnee soldiers: “As we came out of our homes in the morning, we just saw the Nigerian soldiers, who were said to have crossed over to Cameroon, all over the place, and looking for where to get food.
“Some of them were holding their weapons, while others don’t have weapons. But their number would likely
reach 400.”
He added: “If you see them, you must pity them, because as someone who works for the army, but due to the condition they found themselves, they had to run away.”

Defence Headquarters said the troops who returned from Cameroon were addressed by the General Officer Commanding the 3 Division, Major
General Zaruwa, “as they embark on another mission in the counter-terrorism campaign.”
“All the soldiers are in high spirit with all their weapons and equipment intact,” the DHQ added.

DailyTrust

Boko Haram Crisis: Hundreds Of Nigerian Troops 'Flee Into Cameroon' - BBC

Some 480 Nigerian soldiers have fled into Cameroon following fierce fighting with Boko Haram militants, Cameroon's army has said.
Army spokesman Lt Col Didier Badjek said the soldiers had been disarmed and were now being accommodated in schools.

Clashes are said to be continuing in the border town of Gamboru Ngala.
Boko Haram on Sunday released a video in which it said it had established an Islamic state in the towns and villages it controls in north-eastern Nigeria.

The group's five-year insurgency has intensified in recent months despite the deployment of thousands of extra troops to the worst-affected areas.
Last week, a group of soldiers refused to follow orders to go and fight Boko Haram, saying the militants were
better equipped.
Insurgents also seized one of Nigeria's two main police training academies, which is near the town of Gwoza, captured earlier this month.
Thousands have fled recent fighting - these people are now living in a school.
The Nigerian soldiers are currently in the Cameroonian town of Maroua, about 80km (50 miles) from the Nigerian border, Lt Col Badjek told the BBC.

Thousands of civilians are also said to have fled across the border.
In May, some 300 people were killed in an attack on Gamboru Ngala, which left much of the town in ruins.
It is near Gwoza, the largest town under control of Boko Haram. In the most recent census, in 2006, it had a population of more than 265,000 people.
In the 52-minute video released on Sunday, Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau said Gwoza was now "part of
the Islamic state".

He did not specify whether his groups now had any links to the Islamic State (IS) group, which has seized much of northern Iraq in recent months, prompting the US to respond with air strikes.
There is no evidence for such links but in July, Mr Shekau congratulated IS on its territorial gains.

Source:
BBC

Scores of Nigerian Soldiers Ambushed, Killed In a Failed Bid To Recapture Damboa Barracks From Boko Haram

Nigerian soldiers deployed to recapture Damboa military base suffered huge casualties as Boko Haram militants ambushed them, killing at least 15 soldiers, a security source has disclosed to SaharaReporters.

The source stated that 200 soldiers had been sent on the operation to reclaim the base from the Islamist insurgents who overran it and took it over a few days ago. Our source stated that the militants, who had hoisted their flag on the base, had dug a trench where many of their heavily armed gunmen lay in ambush awaiting what they knew would be the inevitable arrival of a contingent of soldiers to retake the base.

As soon as the soldiers approached, the Islamist militants surprised them by opening fire from their trenches, killing as many as 15 soldiers and wounding many more, said the source. “Some of the injured soldiers said that they lost 15 soldiers, but the full extent of those who died is even unclear now,” he told our correspondent.

“I went to the MRS Hospital in Maimalari barracks in Maiduguri. The hospital is filled to capacity with injured soldiers,” said the source. He added that the hospital was so stretched that some of the wounded soldiers were on the bare floor to receive treatment. “There’s a lack of space and facilities to accommodate the injured victims.”

Our source said the injured soldiers were enraged that they were sent on such a high-risk operation without enough firepower and troops to take out Boko Haram insurgents. “They are very angry and the atmosphere is tense,” said the source.

Courtesy:
SaharaReporters