The Nigerian Army said its soldiers engaged in the counter-terrorism operations in the North-East have thwarted terrorists’ attempt to attack one of its military bases at Damboa in Borno State.
The Army said the soldiers killed 19 of the terrorists, wounded several others and recovered several arms and ammunition from them.
The Media Coordinator in charge of Nigerian Army Operations, Col Aminu Iliyasu, however, said that three soldiers lost their lives during the encounter while four others were injured in the battle.
Illiyasu said the wounded soldiers had since been evacuated to a military medical facility for where they were being treated.
In a statement, Iliyasu said: “A misguided attempt by some criminal Boko Haram elements to attack the troops of 25 Task Force Brigade (Army Super Camp 2) located in Damboa LGA of Borno State has met a crushing defeat in the hands of the resilient troops.
“The marauding criminals mounted on gun trucks and with a number of their foot soldiers attempted to infiltrate the troops’ location from three different fronts in the early hours of 4 March, 2020. The troops responded swiftly, bringing to bear superior firepower against the criminals in conjunction with the Air Task Force Operation Lafiya Dole.
“The encounter, which lasted over an hour, witnessed one of the most debilitating defeats of the Boko Haram criminals in a single encounter since the turn of the year. So far, 19 Boko Haram criminals’ corpses have been recovered while many more were observed escaping with various degrees of gunshot wounds by the troops who are on vigorous exploitation of their initial success along the criminals’ withdrawal route.
“Interestingly, the gallant troops captured from the Boko Haram criminals’ five AK-47 rifles, one general-purpose machine gun and one rocket-propelled gun tube. Regrettably, three valiant soldiers paid the supreme prize while four others were wounded in action.
“However, the wounded in action soldiers have been evacuated to a military medical facility for immediate and effective management.
“To this end, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen Tukur Buratai hereby congratulates the troops of Operation Lafiya Dole for their decisive victory against the enemies of our country. He further urges them to remain steadfast, loyal and resolute in the discharge of their professional responsibilities.
“He further reassures the residents of Damboa and indeed the North-East at large of the unflinching resolve of troops of Operation Lafiya Dole in protecting the lives and properties of all law- abiding citizens.”
In a similar attack in Yobe, gunmen suspected to be members of Boko Haram, overran Dapchi last Wednesday, killing seven Mobile police officers and one unidentified person.
The insurgents stormed the town at about 6:00 pm in four Toyota hilux shooting sporadically.
It would be recalled that Dapchi is the town in Yobe State, where over 110 schoolgirs were kidnapped in 2018, including Leah Sharibu, the Christian girl who refused to renounce her faith in exchange for release by her Boko Haram captors.
However, the coordinator of terrorism de-radicalisation programme Operation Safe Corridor, Maj-Gen Bamidele Shafa, said, yesterday, that 606 ex-Boko Haram fighters are set to be reunited with their families after undergoing rehabilitation under the federal initiative.
Shafa made this known at the opening of a stakeholder meeting to work out modalities for transferring the former terrorists to their national and state government authorities for reintegration held at the Defence Headquarters, Abuja.
According to the general, 25 Nigerians, including 14 male adults, three female adults and eight children, who voluntarily laid down their arms in Niger Republic had been repatriated in February and awaiting reintegration.
The Coordinator, noting that Operation Safe Corridor was established by President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015 to create a means for repentant Boko Haram fighters to surrender and go through a well-structured de-radicalization and rehabilitation programme, said since its inception, 893 repentant Boko Haram fighters referred to as ‘clients’ have been admitted into the programme, out of which 280, including two Chadians have been transferred to their respective national and state authorities.
On rumours making the rounds that ex-terrorists were being recruited into the Nigerian Armed Forces, Shafa said: “I wish to categorically refute the claim and assure Nigerians that none of the rehabilitated Nigerians from Operation Safe Corridor De-radicalization, Rehabilitation and Reintegration has been recruited into the Nigerian military or any sister security agencies as stringent measures have been put in place to prevent such from happening.”
Meanwhile, the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Gabriel Olonisakin, has dismissed reports that repentant and rehabilitated Boko Haram members were being recruited into the Nigerian military.
Olonisakin, who was represented by Chief of Defence Policy and Plans, AVM Nurudeen Balogun, stated this at a Stakeholders’ Meeting of Operation Safe Corridor, yesterday in Abuja.
At the meeting convened by the Defence Headquarters to work out modalities for the transfer of rehabilitated ex-Boko Haram terrorists to their national and state governments, Olonisakin said, “I wish to assure Nigerians that none of the rehabilitated Nigerians from OPSC Deradicalization, Rehabilitation and Reintegration has been recruited into the Nigerian military or any of its sister agencies.
“Stringent measures have been put in place to prevent such from happening.