Nigerian fighter jets have bombed the
northeast town of Malam Fatori, controlled by
Boko Haram Islamists, the military said
Thursday.
Witnesses and some media reports said troops
and airforce planes from neighbouring Chad
were involved in the operation on Nigerian soil
but Abuja neither confirmed nor denied the
claim.
There was no initial word on casualties or
whether Boko Haram fighters had fled the
area.
“Malam Fatori is within the area of operation
covered by the Multinational Joint Task Force
(MNJTF) of which Chad has always been a
part,” defence spokesman Chris Olukolade told
AFP in a text message.
“The Nigerian airforce has also been
conducting (an) air mission there for two days
now,” he added. “It is all part of the ongoing
efforts against terrorism.”
The MNJTF was set up more than a decade
ago to combat smuggling in the remote region
but as the Nigerian Islamist insurgency in the
area intensified, the mandate of the force
changed.
Residents in the town of Bosso, which lies
next to Malam Fatori but across the border in
Niger, said the bombardment began early on
Wednesday and lasted for several hours.
“At around 8:00 am (0700 GMT) we started
seeing three military jets encircling Malam
Fatori and soon after (they) began dropping
bombs,” said Idrissa Ari, a Bosso resident.
Reaching locals inside Malam Fatori is
difficult given the collapse of the mobile
phone network on the Nigerian side of the
border.
The authorities in N’Djamena did not respond
to requests seeking comment on their alleged
involvement in the operation.
The Boko Haram uprising has become a
regional crisis, with the four directly affected
countries — Cameroon, Chad, Niger and
Nigeria — agreeing to boost cooperation to
contain the threat.
The African Union’s annual summit in the
Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa is this week
expected to focus heavily on the threat from
Boko Haram.
AU chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has called
the insurgency “a threat to the whole
continent”.
– Chadian troops in Cameroon –
A brutal attack this month on the Nigerian
town of Baga, near Chad and Niger, killed
several hundred people and raised fresh
questions about the Nigerian military’s
capacity to face Boko Haram alone.
An aerial bombardment inside Nigeria by the
Chadian airforce, if confirmed, would mark a
major development in bilateral security
cooperation.
While it was unclear whether Chadian troops
had begun operating in Nigeria, security
sources said soldiers from Chad had arrived in
Cameroon ahead of an expected campaign
against the Islamists.
“The first Chadian soldiers were deployed
yesterday (Wednesday) in Fotokol,” a
Cameroonian security source told AFP,
requesting anonymity.
Fotokol is just 500 meters (0.3 miles) from
the Nigerian town of Gamboru, currently
controlled by Boko Haram.
A senior Cameroonian officer said the
deployment was part of “preliminary action”
for the Chadian army to take on Boko Haram
alongside troops from Yaounde.
The insurgents control large parts of Nigeria’s
Borno state, which shares borders with
Cameroon, Chad and Niger.
Meanwhile, local sources in three areas of
Cameroon’s far north reported that 10 people
had their throats slit by suspected Boko
Haram militants this week.
Vanguard
northeast town of Malam Fatori, controlled by
Boko Haram Islamists, the military said
Thursday.
Witnesses and some media reports said troops
and airforce planes from neighbouring Chad
were involved in the operation on Nigerian soil
but Abuja neither confirmed nor denied the
claim.
There was no initial word on casualties or
whether Boko Haram fighters had fled the
area.
“Malam Fatori is within the area of operation
covered by the Multinational Joint Task Force
(MNJTF) of which Chad has always been a
part,” defence spokesman Chris Olukolade told
AFP in a text message.
“The Nigerian airforce has also been
conducting (an) air mission there for two days
now,” he added. “It is all part of the ongoing
efforts against terrorism.”
The MNJTF was set up more than a decade
ago to combat smuggling in the remote region
but as the Nigerian Islamist insurgency in the
area intensified, the mandate of the force
changed.
Residents in the town of Bosso, which lies
next to Malam Fatori but across the border in
Niger, said the bombardment began early on
Wednesday and lasted for several hours.
“At around 8:00 am (0700 GMT) we started
seeing three military jets encircling Malam
Fatori and soon after (they) began dropping
bombs,” said Idrissa Ari, a Bosso resident.
Reaching locals inside Malam Fatori is
difficult given the collapse of the mobile
phone network on the Nigerian side of the
border.
The authorities in N’Djamena did not respond
to requests seeking comment on their alleged
involvement in the operation.
The Boko Haram uprising has become a
regional crisis, with the four directly affected
countries — Cameroon, Chad, Niger and
Nigeria — agreeing to boost cooperation to
contain the threat.
The African Union’s annual summit in the
Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa is this week
expected to focus heavily on the threat from
Boko Haram.
AU chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has called
the insurgency “a threat to the whole
continent”.
– Chadian troops in Cameroon –
A brutal attack this month on the Nigerian
town of Baga, near Chad and Niger, killed
several hundred people and raised fresh
questions about the Nigerian military’s
capacity to face Boko Haram alone.
An aerial bombardment inside Nigeria by the
Chadian airforce, if confirmed, would mark a
major development in bilateral security
cooperation.
While it was unclear whether Chadian troops
had begun operating in Nigeria, security
sources said soldiers from Chad had arrived in
Cameroon ahead of an expected campaign
against the Islamists.
“The first Chadian soldiers were deployed
yesterday (Wednesday) in Fotokol,” a
Cameroonian security source told AFP,
requesting anonymity.
Fotokol is just 500 meters (0.3 miles) from
the Nigerian town of Gamboru, currently
controlled by Boko Haram.
A senior Cameroonian officer said the
deployment was part of “preliminary action”
for the Chadian army to take on Boko Haram
alongside troops from Yaounde.
The insurgents control large parts of Nigeria’s
Borno state, which shares borders with
Cameroon, Chad and Niger.
Meanwhile, local sources in three areas of
Cameroon’s far north reported that 10 people
had their throats slit by suspected Boko
Haram militants this week.
Vanguard
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