The Nigerian Army, members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) and other security operatives killed eight Jamā’at Ahl as-Sunnah lid-Da’way Wa’l-Jihād (JAS) fighters and captured three others in an attack on Goniri village in the Bama Local Government Area on Sunday, October 2.
A CJTF member, who asked to remain anonymous, told RNI that the JAS, better known as Boko Haram, attacked the village at about 7pm. Troops from the 21 Armoured Brigade, in collaboration with the CJTF, successfully repelled the insurgents and chased them away. In the fierce fight, eight insurgents were killed and three were captured.
He said the CJTF alerted the Nigerian Army when they heard gunshots in the distance and suspected JAS insurgents were about to attack. Troops soon responded by shelling the JAS.
“The CJTF commander and some of our members, with other security operatives, went to the scene in two vehicles, where we caught one of the three Boko Haram insurgents captured by the troops. We saw insurgents running into the bushes and some looked like they were severely wounded.
“On Thursday, September 29, ground troops, with support from the Nigerian Air Force, successfully raided a Boko Haram insurgents’ camp near the Sambisa Forest and killed many insurgents in an air strike. The troops also captured some of the Boko Haram’s known leaders [Amirs] and rescued a woman, who said she was one of the abducted Chibok girls. A few elderly men and women were also rescued. During the operation, four insurgents, with their guns and rocket-propelled grenades surrendered to the troops. Most of the insurgents were wearing black camouflaged uniforms.”
He said one Amir with 25 of his fighters surrendered to Nigerian Army in Bama town.
“The military and the CJTF, with other security operatives, have recorded massive feats and successes in their counterinsurgency operations.
“In the course of Thursday’s encounter, troops successfully rescued Yana Pogu, a Chibok girl, who was number 19 on the list of missing girls. She was found with four-month-old twins, who were obviously not well, and two other children,” the CJTF source said.
“Some of the fleeing insurgents tried to ambush troops. But the soldiers responded quickly with aggressive fire power, forcing them to flee. The troops rescued some more women after the encounter. They were taken to the 21 Armoured Brigade in Bama for medical attention.”
He said Bama town was peaceful again and residents were going about their normal day-to-day activities. On Sunday, residents joined the troops and other security operatives who were celebrating successfully repelling the insurgents’ attack on the town.”
Zagazola Makama, a counterinsurgency expert and a security analyst in the Lake Chad region, told RNI about Thursday’s attack, saying that the troops, backed by a column of CJTF members, stormed a JAS enclave near Bama.
“An intelligence source told me that the troops engaged and overwhelmed the insurgents, neutralising scores of terrorists in the process, while several others escaped with severe gunshot wounds,” said Makama.
SHETTIMA LAWAN MONGUNO
