Recently, when Alhaji Lai Mohammed said Boko Haram insurgents have been “technically defeated”, he also said that Nigerians must expect some more attacks by the jihadists.
Boko Haram has been defeated – Alhaji Lai Mohammed says.
The minister of information and culture told Nigerians during a town hall meeting in Lagos that President Muhammadu Buhari’s purposeful leadership has ended the insurgency, adding that all that is left now is the reconstruction of communities, and the resettlement and rehabilitation of the internally displaced persons as they return home.
As assuring as the minister’s statement might have sounded to some, to others it was worrying, especially in the light of recent attacks by the terror group. The latest actions by Boko Haram have left many Nigerians wondering about the true meaning of the term ‘defeat’.
Scores of insurgents were reported killed while some soldiers were wounded after Boko Haram fighters attacked soldiers early on Monday, April 18, near the border with Niger in the northern town of Kareto in Borno state. Military sources reported that the attack, which followed many other attacks on military and police formations in the northeast, lasted for about three hours.
Prior to the attack at Kareto town, the insurgents had reportedly attacked Zango village, Gulani local government area in Yobe state, on April 19, Tuesday. Vigilante members and residents said that the insurgents arrived on horseback and shot dead 11 people.
The attack reportedly occurred around midnight when the Boko Haram members set ablaze houses and shot randomly at people trying to run from the flames.
One of the vigilantes, who asked to be anonymous, said: “The gunmen came midnight after 11:45pm, set ablaze our houses and opened fire on the people trying to escape. They chased people on horses and open fire on them.” According to the source, similar attacks happened in the neighbouring villages where over 20 people were murdered.
The terror group, which first came to prominence about seven years ago, has grown to become the deadliest in the world, as ranked by the Global Terrorism Index in 2015.
The fact that the sect’s actions have led to the killing of about 20,000 people and the displacement of about 2.3 million from their homes, is reason enough why this group must be taken seriously, and why they should never be underestimated.
Boko Haram killed over 6,600 people in 2014 alone, and carried out mass abductions including the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls from Chibok in April 2014.
According to an Amnesty International report published in September 2015, at least 1,600 people were killed by Boko Haram since the beginning of June 2015 when Buhari was inaugurated as the president of Nigeria. That means that twelve Nigerians were killed every day by the jihadists from when Buhari came into office to when the report was published, or in other words that during that period of time one Nigerian died every two hours as a result of Boko Haram attacks or suicide bombings.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agency estimated the number of people killed by Boko Haram during the same period of four months as more than 1,320 victims. According to UN figures, this massive death toll approximately equals the number of people killed in Boko Haram attacks for a twice longer period of time in 2013 when Goodluck Jonathan was in power. Over the period from May 2013 to December 2013, when jihadists intensified their attacks, at least 1,224 people were killed.
Recently, when Alhaji Lai Mohammed said Boko Haram insurgents have been “technically defeated”, he also said that Nigerians must expect some more attacks by the jihadists.
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Boko Haram has been defeated – Alhaji Lai Mohammed says.
The minister of information and culture told Nigerians during a town hall meeting in Lagos that President Muhammadu Buhari’s purposeful leadership has ended the insurgency, adding that all that is left now is the reconstruction of communities, and the resettlement and rehabilitation of the internally displaced persons as they return home.
As assuring as the minister’s statement might have sounded to some, to others it was worrying, especially in the light of recent attacks by the terror group. The latest actions by Boko Haram have left many Nigerians wondering about the true meaning of the term ‘defeat’.
Scores of insurgents were reported killed while some soldiers were wounded after Boko Haram fighters attacked soldiers early on Monday, April 18, near the border with Niger in the northern town of Kareto in Borno state. Military sources reported that the attack, which followed many other attacks on military and police formations in the northeast, lasted for about three hours.
Prior to the attack at Kareto town, the insurgents had reportedly attacked Zango village, Gulani local government area in Yobe state, on April 19, Tuesday. Vigilante members and residents said that the insurgents arrived on horseback and shot dead 11 people.
The attack reportedly occurred around midnight when the Boko Haram members set ablaze houses and shot randomly at people trying to run from the flames.
One of the vigilantes, who asked to be anonymous, said: “The gunmen came midnight after 11:45pm, set ablaze our houses and opened fire on the people trying to escape. They chased people on horses and open fire on them.” According to the source, similar attacks happened in the neighbouring villages where over 20 people were murdered.
The deadliest terror group
To underestimate the murderous potential of Boko Haram is to play with fire. The flames might not only engulf Nigeria as a nation, but could at any time flare into an inferno that could do irreparable damage to Africa as a continent.
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READ ALSO: Outrageous! See how Boko Haram parents are training their children (video)
The terror group, which first came to prominence about seven years ago, has grown to become the deadliest in the world, as ranked by the Global Terrorism Index in 2015.
The fact that the sect’s actions have led to the killing of about 20,000 people and the displacement of about 2.3 million from their homes, is reason enough why this group must be taken seriously, and why they should never be underestimated.
Boko Haram killed over 6,600 people in 2014 alone, and carried out mass abductions including the kidnapping of 276 schoolgirls from Chibok in April 2014.
According to an Amnesty International report published in September 2015, at least 1,600 people were killed by Boko Haram since the beginning of June 2015 when Buhari was inaugurated as the president of Nigeria. That means that twelve Nigerians were killed every day by the jihadists from when Buhari came into office to when the report was published, or in other words that during that period of time one Nigerian died every two hours as a result of Boko Haram attacks or suicide bombings.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agency estimated the number of people killed by Boko Haram during the same period of four months as more than 1,320 victims. According to UN figures, this massive death toll approximately equals the number of people killed in Boko Haram attacks for a twice longer period of time in 2013 when Goodluck Jonathan was in power. Over the period from May 2013 to December 2013, when jihadists intensified their attacks, at least 1,224 people were killed.
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