by Olatunji Saliu
ABUJA, May 29 (Xinhua) — Nigeria’s military responded firmly to a recent violent attack by suspected terrorists, killing dozens in a gunfight and thwarting an assault on a troop location in the northeastern state of Borno.
Many arms and ammunition, vehicles, and explosives allegedly belonging to the suspected members of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) terror group were recovered by troops after the gunfight on Tuesday morning in New Marte, a town in Borno located in the western part of the Lake Chad, Reuben Kovangiya, a spokesperson for the army, told reporters in the afternoon.
For several weeks, Nigeria’s northeastern region has been under intense attack by terror groups, including Boko Haram, which aims to establish an Islamist state in that part of the country, extending its attacks to the Lake Chad basin. ISWAP is a breakaway faction from Boko Haram.
According to local media reports, at least 12 terrorist attacks have occurred in the northeastern region over the past three weeks, resulting in the deaths of more than 40 civilians. The terrorists have reportedly improved their capabilities with new technology, including drones, to attack local communities and military formations.
“The intense attacks looked like a resurgence of the terror groups in the northeastern part of the country, where we had initially thought that the Nigerian forces had taken over, sending the terrorists to the fringes,” Kolawole Oladokun, a local security expert, told Xinhua in a recent interview. “Now, it is clear that the military is fighting back harder than before. They are turning the tide against the criminals.”
The gunfight on Tuesday in New Marte was a heavy blow to the terrorists. That morning, they rode on dozens of motorcycles with the intention of overrunning the town. However, their luck ran out when the troops responded with overwhelming firepower.
A statement released on Tuesday night by the army said the air force supported the troops by providing real-time intelligence and surveillance, as well as launching offensive airstrikes. The airstrikes destroyed numerous motorcycles that the fleeing fighters had used, and ground troops recovered an improvised explosive device that the terrorists had abandoned during their retreat.
Zagazola Makama, a counterinsurgency expert and security analyst based in the Lake Chad region, told Xinhua that ISWAP hastily evacuated at least 15 of its fighters’ bodies after the gunfight with troops.
Last week, troops also repelled another attack on a Military Forward Operating Base in Kumshe, elsewhere in Borno, killing several suspected terrorists in a fierce confrontation, a separate statement by the military said.
After a meeting with Nigerian President Bola Tinubu on Monday, Babagana Zulum, governor of Borno State, told reporters that the government has vowed to prevent terrorists from taking over any part of the state, citing the intensified effort of the military.
“The Nigerian armed forces have taken certain decisions that will curtail the imminent threat of the insurgency. And I believe something shall be done. Most importantly, some plans are underway by the federal government,” Zulum said.
Earlier this month, Nigerian Defense Minister Mohammed Badaru told reporters in the national capital of Abuja that one of the “most wanted” terrorist leaders in the northern part of the country, identified as Bello Turji, had been on the run as a result of the sustained anti-terror operations by the military.
Badaru noted that Nigeria’s security challenges are deeply rooted in decades-long social and political fractures, economic dislocation, transnational border influence, and global terrorism metrics that continue to mutate beyond classical military doctrines.
He said addressing those threats accordingly requires a multifaceted approach, including the combination of military efforts with socioeconomic development and regional cooperation, to ensure lasting peace and stability.
“Recently, there has been a renewed impetus to all our operations across the country, translating into commendable achievement, specifically in the northeast,” the minister said. “Despite the recent short-lived desperation of the terrorists, troops have responded excessively and dealt a devastating blow across the theaters.”
On April 23, Tinubu ordered an immediate overhaul of national security strategies to address the escalating armed attacks. “Enough is enough,” he told a meeting of the country’s security chiefs in Abuja while condemning the recent attacks in the northern part of the country.
The president’s order, signaling the needed political will, has charged the government forces to double their efforts in overcoming the security challenges, Badaru added. Enditem
Source: Xinhua
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