Chibok Girls: Troops Block Boko Haram’s Supply Routes

The Nigerian Army and the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) are tightening the noose round the neck of Boko Haram in the Lake Chad area, according to indications yesterday. The troops have blocked all supply routes to the insurgents in the build-up to the next stage of liberating the over 200 Chibok girls abducted two years ago by the terrorists. The blockade covers arms, ammunition and other logistics, highly placed sources told The Nation.

The number of MNJTF troops deployed in the Lake Chad Basin by Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger Republic had hit 10,500 by yesterday. The MNJTF forces are receiving intelligence and reconnaissance assistance from France, Britain and the United States. Nigeria has already released $80miilion (N33.440billion) of the $100million it pledged to revitalize the MNJTF. A top military source confirmed last night that the blockade was part of the ongoing Operation Crackdown against the insurgents. But he explained that the troops could not move now into the targeted part of Sambisa Forest because of the rains. Sources said the marshy nature of the area makes movement difficult at this time of the year. Said one of the sources:“There is no doubt about the fact that we have blocked all supply routes of Boko Haram. These include supply of arms, ammunition and other logistics. If we don’t do so, we won’t have recorded the success at hand. “This is not just a Nigerian issue;we have been able to bring our neighbouring countries on board. We are all working collectively for peace in the Lake Chad Basin. “We now have about 10,500 troops in the MNJTF already deployed in Lake Chad Basin in order to make it a battle to the finish. “Some people did not believe that the MNJTF and the Nigerian Army could succeed in defeating Boko Haram to this extent. We are, however, not relenting in our Operation Crackdown.”

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Escaped Chibok Girl Tells CNN She Still Misses Her Insurgent husband

Escaped Chibok girl, Amina Ali Nkeki says she still misses her Boko Haram fighter husband and she still thinks about him three months after escaping the militants’ camp.

Amina who was held hostage by the terrorist group for more than two years, says she was married off a year into her ordeal and later had a baby girl, Safiya.
The couple and their daughter were found on the outskirts of Nigeria’s Sambisa Forest in May. She says they fled the camp by themselves and were not rescued by the Nigerian military, contrary to reports.

She however says she has no idea where he is now and is keen to be reunited with him.

“I’m not comfortable with the way I’m being kept from him,” the painfully shy 21-year-old told CNN, speaking to the media for the first time at an undisclosed location in Abuja yesterday.

Addressing the father of her child directly, she says: “I want you to know that I’m still thinking about you, and just because we are separated doesn’t mean I have forgotten about you.”

Her statements came two days after the terrorist group released a grisly video showing the dead bodies of young women, taken in the aftermath of what Boko Haram says was a Nigerian airstrike.

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Police kills protesting youth in Kogi

There was uproar yesterday in Umomi community in the Ofu Local Government Area of Kogi State when some policemen attached to the Ugwolawo division opened fire on a crowd of protesting youths.

Two of the youths, identified as Okaye Omodi and Zekeri Mohammed, were shot dead by the officers, who immediately fled to their station.

It was gathered that the youths were protesting the arrest and detention of some residents, including a retired police officer identified as Peter Adama.

A Punch correspondent gathered that Adama and others were arrested around 11pm on Tuesday by some officers attached to the Special Anti-Robbery Squad.

A resident, Jeremiah Idege, said the operatives swooped on the community after some Fulani herdsmen reported that their cows had been killed by some residents. Idege claimed that the allegation was false, saying that the herdsmen had actually invaded and destroyed the community’s farmland.

He said. “We have issues with the Fulani herdsmen and that has been on for as long as 15 years. They have been destroying our farmland with reckless abandon. As I speak with you, our community is wrecked.

“The little we have left was ravaged again by their cows recently and we reported the matter at the Ugwolawo Police Division. We were given four policemen to follow us to assess the level of damage done to our crops.

“Later, the police said we should come to a roundtable meeting with the herdsmen so they could resolve the case; but we refused. We just asked them to leave in peace. If we collect any money from them, they will say they have bought the lands and they will completely take over what we have left.”

It was learnt that a few days after the mediation failed, the herdsmen reported that some cows had been killed by the residents.

Punch was told that some of the community leaders followed the herdsmen round to see the alleged dead cows, but found none. Another resident of the community, Sani Emmanuel, said the herdsmen made the allegation because they were asked to leave the village.

Emmanuel said on Monday, the Fulani leaders reported again at the police station that another set of cows had been killed.

He said, “On Tuesday, around 11pm, a group of policemen entered our village and started breaking doors and ransacking our homes. They arrested a lot of people, including Adama, who is retired police officer.”

Emmnauel said the arrest did not go down well with the community youths, who trooped out on Wednesday to protest the continued destruction of their farmland without any help from the security agents.

Punch Metro was told that the youths blocked the roads and sang solidarity songs. A witness, who did not want his name in print, said the protest was peaceful.

He said, “The protest, which started around 10am, was peaceful and it was within our village. Suddenly, armed policemen from the Ugwolawo division drove in and shot live bullets into the crowd. We all fled without knowing what had happened. The policemen had left before we knew they had killed two people.”

The corpses were said to have been abandoned on the road until the Ata of Igala, Mr. Michael Idakwo, reportedly arrived at the scene and ordered that the victims’ families should take them away for burial.

The Police Public Relations Officer, Kogi State Command, William Aya, confirmed the incident, adding that the state Commissioner of Police had gone to visit the scene.

He said, “I don’t have all the details of what transpired now. But the state Commissioner of Police has gone to see what actually transpired and assuage the residents. I will get back when I finally get the details.”

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Boko Haram killed 1,900 herdsmen – Association

The Al-Hayah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria said about 1,900 herdsmen were killed by Boko Haram terrorists in separate attacks in four years in Borno.

Alhaji Ibrahim Mafa, Chairman of the Association, on Wednesday said that members of the association also lost about 169, 000 cows; 63, 000 rams; goats and sheep to the insurgency.

He said some of the stolen animals were kept around Dikwa town for onward transportation to other parts of the country for sale in neighbouring countries of Chad, Niger and Cameroon.

“We also lost about 400, 000 sacks of grains and a number of our members were displaced.

“Our herdsmen have lost cows, property and houses worth about N26 billion in 10 local government areas in Northern Borno.

“These areas include; Kala Balge, Marte, Mafa, Munguno, Bama, Konduga and Gwoza.

“We are, therefore, appealing to the government to come to the aid of our people who are in dire need of help,“the chairman said.

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