From Timothy Olanrewaju, Maiduguri
Troops of the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) have neutralised 100 Boko Haram/ISWAP commanders and their fighters during special operations around Lake Chad.
MNJTF spokesman, Col Muhammad Dole, in a statement from its N’Djamena headquarters in Chad, yesterday, said troops launched land and air strikes on the terrorists’ enclaves around the Lake Chad shores during a special operation codenamed Operation Lake Sanity.
“Well over a hundred terrorists have been neutralised, including over 10 top commanders following intelligence driven lethal air strikes in the Lake Chad islands,” he disclosed.
He identified some of the commanders as Abubakar Dan Buduma, Abubakar Shuwa, Abu Ali and Abu Jubrilla.
He said the recent operation was carried out by a combined team of MNJTF, Hadin Kai Theatre Command, other security agencies and the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF).
He disclosed that troops raided the terrorists enclaves at Zanari, Arinawoje, which served as a major fabrication workshop for the terrorists, Asagar, Larki and Garere.
Other areas cleared by the troops, according to the force spokesman, include Kerenoa, Wurje, Arege, Abadam, Doron Lelewa and Kolaram.
He said some ammunition, especially a 105 mm artillery piece, were seized from the terrorists, while others were also destroyed.
Other equipment captured from the operation are canoes/boats, motorcycles and bicycles. He said Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) making factories and bunkers were destroyed. Troops also rescued women and children held hostage by the terrorists in their camps.
He disclosed that the military discovered, in the course of the operation, that the terrorists now avoid contact with the military, but use IED borne vehicles. He said the development led to the injuries of 18 soldiers and officers.
The MNJTF consists of the Lake Chad Basin Commission, including Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon and Niger Republic. The headquarters of the force is located in N’Djamena, the Chad capital. Borno shares boundaries with the three nations.