The Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Azubike Ihejirika, yesterday arrived in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital to assess the deployment of troops of the newly formed 7 Division of Nigerian Army.
The division has taken over the management of security in the North East zone as the Joint Task Force (JTF) has been dissolved as the next phase of the prosecution of the war against the Boko Haram insurgency as ordered by President Goodluck Jonathan.
Also yesterday, the military said that it had killed 50 Boko Haram members in an operation in the northeast launched in response to an insurgent attack, in the latest violence to hit the region.
According to an Agence France Presse (AFP), gunmen suspected to be from the violent group opened fire in a market on Thursday in the town of Gajiran, killing 15 people.
Military spokesman Sagir Musa told journalists in Maiduguri that the military sent troops in pursuit of the attackers backed by air support.
The troops, according to him, pursued the terrorists to their camps with air support and about 50 insurgents were killed in a shootout. Troops are pursuing the remnants of the fleeing terrorists by blocking all possible escape routes,” he added.
In Gajiran, about 50 kilometres (30 miles) from Maiduguri, Borno’s capital, dozens of Boko Haram gunmen reportedly pretended to be traders selling goods in the local market.
They allegedly spread into groups, spraying civilians with gunfire, while separately setting fire to a local government building and a police post.
The military has claimed major gains in the offensive, describing the Islamists as being in disarray and only capable of attacking soft targets in remote areas.
While the number of attacks appeared to decline shortly after the military campaign was launched, the bloodshed has spiked in recent weeks, with dozens of people killed in a range of attacks across the region.
After being briefed by the Division’s General Officer Commanding, Major General Obidah Ethan, the Army chief visited troops and equipment of the formation which has been tasked to continue the operations to flush out terrorists from the North East.
Meanwhile, a combined team of senior officers from the Army and Defence Headquarters are visiting various locations in the North East to check the deployment of the new 7 Division of the Nigerian Army.
According to the Director of Defence Information, Brig-Gen Chris Olukolade, the teams will assess the level of effectiveness of the division’s deployment for handling the next phase of the security operations in its area of responsibility.
They will on return to Abuja, brief the Chief of Defence Staff and the Chief of Army Staff on the state of the mission being undertaken by the outfit.
No comments:
Post a Comment