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52 Soldiers, 1,000 Jihadists Die In Offensive, Army Confirms …As Nigeria, Chad Agree To Sustain Tempo Over Boko Haram’s Defeat

Published

7 years ago

April 10, 2020

The Chadian Army said, yesterday, that it had wound up an offensive against Boko Haram jihadists in the Lake Chad border region in which 52 troops and 1,000 jihadists were killed.
The Army spokesman, Colonel Azem Bermendoa Agouna told newsmen that the operation, launched after nearly 100 soldiers were killed last month, ended last Wednesday after the Nigerian jihadists were forced out of the country.
“A thousand terrorists have been killed, 50 motorised canoes have been destroyed,” he said, referring to a large boat also called a pirogue.
It is the first official snapshot of the outcome of Operation Bohoma Anger, launched after Chad’s armed forces suffered their biggest one-day loss in their history.
Lake Chad is a vast, marshy body of water where the borders of Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon meet.
The western shores of the lake have been hit by jihadists crossing from Nigeria’s North-East, where Boko Haram launched a bloody campaign of violence in 2009.
On March 23, jihadists mounted a deadly seven-hour assault on a Chadian Army base at Bohoma, killing at least 98 troops, according to an official toll.
Chad declared departments near the lake “a war zone” in order to give the military free rein for the offensive.
The four countries bordering the lake, had in 2015 set up a formation called the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), also including Benin, to fight Boko Haram.
But Chad, whose forces have a relatively high standing in the Sahel, has shown frustration with the MNJTF following the Bohoma losses.
“Chad is alone in shouldering all the burden of the war against Boko Haram,” President Idriss Deby Itno complained last weekend.
“I met the commander of the MNJTF and asked him to take over.”
Boko Haram’s 11-year-old campaign has claimed tens of thousands of lives in Nigeria’s North-East, and driven nearly two million people from their homes.
Separately, in Niger, the Defence Ministry in Niamey said its armed forces, in a joint operation with Chad, had inflicted “heavy losses” on Boko Haram in the Lake Chad region.
“Arms caches, logistical points and several boats were destroyed” and islands used as rear bases in the lake’s marshland were “bombarded from the air,” it said.
Landlocked and poor, Niger is facing jihadist attacks in opposite ends of the country — an insurgency that has spilled over from neighbouring Mali, and raids in the Lake Chad region by Boko Haram fighters.
However, in Burkina Faso, five soldiers were killed and three were wounded, yesterday, when their unit came under attack from jihadists in Solle, in the northern province of Loroum, an Army official said.
Around 4,000 people lost their lives last year in jihadist or community-related violence in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, according to UN figures.
Meanwhile, Nigeria and the Republic of Chad, yesterday, agreed to sustain the tempo to the defeat suffered by Boko Haram where five bases of the terror group in both countries were destroyed.
The Minister of Defence, Maj.-Gen. Bashir Magashi (rtd) said this at the bilateral meeting of ministers of defence of the two countries in Abuja.
He said it was imperative to sustain the tempo of the current operation in order to retain the gain recorded by the Multinational Joint Task Force by destroying Boko Haram’s bases.
He said the creation of the Multinational Joint Task Force by the two countries had unleashed deadly blow on the insurgency, adding that there was need to sustain the tempo.
“We need to seek ways to end Boko Haram and the meeting will come up with acceptable ways of ending the insurgency.
“We need new strategy to fast track the rooting out of Boko Haram, if we want our region to be free of terrorists,” he said.
It would be recalled that Boko Haram had in 2009 launched a bloody insurgency in North-East Nigeria but later spread its atrocities to neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon, which prompted a military response.
The minister said that in spite of the successes recorded in the fight against Boko Haram, Nigeria was concerned about the heightening activities of the terrorists group as suggested by recent attacks on military locations.
He also raised the alarm over the spate of kidnapping, banditry and other heinous activities in the country.
He added that the Nigerian armed forces had not relented in its efforts to fight all terrorist group’s operation in the sub-region, while commending the success recorded in individual countries through the MJTF.
Magashi said that the current security challenges ravaging the entire world over COVID-19 with far reaching socio-economic consequences and the current security development on the restriction of movement also necessitated the meeting.
“I must also add that the meeting holding at this auspicious time and the premium our governments placed on our nation, we respectively commend the two Presidents for their determination,” he said.
The Chadian Minister of Defence, Mahamat Aba-Ali Soilah, however, promised its support for the fight, adding that the government of Chad would sustain the tempo.

Featured

RSG Floats MNET Culture Content Promo

Published

18 hours ago

November 6, 2026

The Tide

The Rivers State Ministry of Culture and Tourism has floated a culture content platform in collaboration with digital television group, Multichoice.

Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Freddy Ndigbara, disclosed this after a meeting with MultiChoice Head of Content Acquisition, Don Dotun Ojon, in Port Harcourt.

He assured that content entrepreneurs and film makers would enjoy the platform by promoting culture and other contents to sell the states tourism potentials.

He said MultiChoice M-net was now open to increase its patronage for content shots on locations in Rivers State, describing the State as one that has numerous potentials for film tourism.

“We were privileged to have Don Ojon with us at the Rivers International Film Festival (RIFF) at the weekend in Bonny and he saw, first hand, the numerous sites and opportunities that are open to creatives in the State. After that, we felt it was important to deepen the conversation and he obliged. This is a cheering news for the sector in the State,” he said.

Ndigbara stated that “Rivers State has many more untold stories to tell, many more contents to reel out and the assurances from the M-net Acquisition Manager is an indication that the industry in the state will soon enjoy a new lease of life”.

The Permanent Secretary thanked Ojon for the visit and assured that creatives in the State would grap this opportunity and show the world that Rivers State is a major hub for film tourism in Nigeria.

On his part, Ojon said the visit was to discuss on ways of promoting tourism in the State using creatives and film.

Ojon said although the company has recently been acquired by canal+ France and is undergoing restructuring, he would promote the chances of Rivers State to host the MultiChoice talent factory in the State.

With Asaba, capital of Delta State, being saturated, Ojon said the next port is Rivers State, which he said is capable of building fresh crop of creatives, new locations, new story lines and concepts.

He, therefore, called for collaboration from stakeholders in the State.

Kevin Nengia

Featured

APC Presidential Campaign Storms PH, ‘Morrow

Published

18 hours ago

November 6, 2026

The Tide

Barring last minute changes, the presidential campaign train of the All Progressives Congress (APC) will storm Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, tomorrow.

This is according to a campaign timetable released by the APC Campaign Council last month.

The Tide reports that the APC presidential campaign kicked off in Kaduna on October 24 with President Bola Tinubu in attendance.

The campaign train later moved to Cross River, Gombe, Nasarawa, and Ekiti on November 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively with the Vice President, Kashim Shettima representing the President at the rallies.

President Tinubu is personally scheduled to attend 12 states including Rivers, Kaduna, Plateau, Oyo, Borno, Enugu, Bauchi, Sokoto, Delta, Kano, Adamawa and Lagos.

The Rivers State rally, scheduled to hold at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Port Harcourt, is expected to witness a large crowd of party supporters drawn from a coalition of political parties in the State.

The party is expected to round off its presidential campaign in Lagos State on January 9, 2027.

The Tide reports that Tinubu has not visited Rivers State as President since he assumed office in May 2023. His last physical visit to the State was before his inauguration on Wednesday, May 3 – Thursday, May 4, 2023, when he was hosted by then Governor Nyesom Wike in Port Harcourt to commission the Rumuola/Rumuokwuta Flyover and the Magistrates’ Court Complex.

Tomorrow’s visit will be his first to the State since assuming office.

Featured

2027: Be Politically Neutral, Fubara Tasks Traditional Rulers

Published

1 week ago

October 30, 2026

The Tide

Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, has charged traditional rulers in the State to maintain neutrality, ensure fairness and uphold peace in their domains as the country prepares for the 2027 general elections.

Fubara gave the charge on Wednesday while declaring open the 126th, 127th and 128th Combined Quarterly Meeting of the Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council, in Port Harcourt.

The governor said the primary function of traditional rulers is to administer justice and ensure fairness, saying their conduct must not lead to division and unmanageable crises.

“Let me therefore, request, if that is the right word to use, that please, as we are entering into this political season actively, everyone should ensure that your conduct promoted peace in your place. Your actions should not be what would lead to the division and multiple crisis that we cannot manage as a government.

“I think with that, we can all live as one and we can also continue to make this progress that we are trying with all our mind, our body and our soul, to ensure that we deliver to our dear State,” he said.

Fubara urged the royal fathers to abide by the oath and constitution they swore to before ascending their respective stools, in the interest of stability and progress of the State.

He also enjoined them to set aside individual sentiments and place the interest of Rivers State above personal considerations, noting that this principle has guided his own day-to-day governance of the State.

“I want to enjoin everyone to keep aside issues of individual sentiments and ensure that the interest of our state supersedes whatever thing that we have in our mind. This is not just what I’m saying here, it is what I’ve also practiced and displayed in my day-to-day life in the governance of our dear State,” he said.

On the appeal for improved welfare for traditional rulers, the governor clarified that the delay in actualising some of the requests they made in the past was not from the government but from the inability of the Council to put its house in order.

Fubara explained that the issue of stipends paid to the traditional rulers by the local government councils, was a statutory benefit provided for in the constitution and not what a state governor can change by mere verbal pronouncements.

He assured that he remains a man of his word and will fulfill his promises to the traditional rulers before leaving office, next year.

He reaffirmed his respect for the traditional institution as custodians of culture and the closest link to the people, thanking them for their prayers and support.

The governor urged the royal fathers to ensure that the combined quarterly meeting featured fruitful deliberations that will strengthen peace and development in the State.

Earlier, the Chairman of the Rivers State Council of Traditional Rulers and Paramount Ruler of Apara Kingdom, His Royal Majesty, Eze Chike Amadi Worlu Wodo, expressed profound gratitude to the State Government for its efforts in maintaining a cordial relationship with the traditional institution.

Wodo highlighted the importance of traditional rulers in conflict resolution, noting that their closeness to the people places them in a strategic position to mediate in disputes involving chieftaincy matters, family disputes and land ownership in their respective communities.

The royal father drew the attention of the State Government to some challenges affecting the performance of the traditional institution, particularly the lack of official utility vehicles and logistical support needed to discharge its responsibilities effectively.

He also appealed for improved monthly stipends and better welfare provisions to reflect prevailing economic realities.