Boko Haram eradicated from Nigeria – Chief of Army Staff

The chief of army staff Tukur Buratai on Tuesday, October 18, said all Boko Haram terrorists have been eliminated from Nigerian territory. The army chief speaking in Lagos at the Albati Barracks while commissioning some structures said most of the terrorists’ attacks are carried out by insurgents from the Lake Chad Basin. Buratai said these attacks are mostly carried out outside the borders of Nigeria. “You cannot call it resurgence. We are taking care of all these. Wherever there is attack, we look at it to see what happened so that we can address specific issues,” Buratai said. “This is a conflict and we have done very well and gone very far. We have pushed them outside our territory. Those who attack mostly come from outside to attack our people. “So, we are working with the multinational Joint Task Force to address that. They are very few and they come from across borders,” he said. While working with the MNJTF to address insurgent attacks at the Basin, Buratai said the Nigerian army plan to free all those under terrorists’ captivity despite ongoing negotiation process. “We are working on our strategy to ensure that all abducted persons, including Chibok girls are rescued. The negotiations by the government does not hinder our strategy,” Buratai said. The army chief added that any arrangement done through diplomacy is also focused on the same aim – rescuing all abducted persons. “The army is collaborating with all security services. We are not overwhelmed nor over stretched. We are better trained, better equipped and have better intelligence.” Meanwhile, the Nigerian army has said some soldiers are missing after an attack on troops by terrorists in Borno state on Monday, October 17. The army spokesperson Sani Usman said the troops who did their best to defend the location to no avail were forced by the insurgents to withdraw from the location. Also, 13 soldiers sustained various degree of injuries from the operation.