Category Archives: Nigeria

Ongoing Insecurity in Lake Chad Region Stretches Aid Agencies

Aid agencies have reported that a series of suicide bombings in Lake Chad in recent months, which have all been blamed on Boko Haram insurgents, has hindered healthcare and aid delivery, effectively leaving tens of thousands of displaced people living in fear of further violence.

In early December, four female suicide bombers attacked the island of Koulfoua, killing at least fifteen people and injuring a further 130 in what is just the latest in a wave of bombings that prompted the Chadian government last month to declare a state of emergency in the Lake Chad region.

While Chad has been instrumental in forcing Boko Haram to cede territory earlier this year, ongoing operations in northeastern Nigeria have effectively forced Boko Haram militants to seek shelter elsewhere. Reports have indicated that while some have used the porous borders to slip into Cameroon, Chad and Niger in a bid to remain safe, experts believe that most militants are hiding on islands located on Lake Chad. The swampy maze of islands in the border areas between Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Nigeria has now become a main target for the militant Islamist group.

According to medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), more than 50,000 people have been forced to leave their homes due to the violence and threat of further attacks, which has hampered the provision of supplies and healthcare to those in need. According to Federica Alberti, MSF head of mission in Chad, “living conditions were already poor and there was a lack of healthcare before the attack, which have left people living in fear,” further adding that “it is challenging to respond in the region because we know more attacks will happen, but do not know when and where, and we can’t go everywhere due to security constraints.” The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has also disclosed that new restrictions aimed at stopping attacks, such as bans on motorised canoes, enforced after the state of emergency was extended until March, have also hindered access for aid agencies.

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has also disclosed that the violence in the region has disrupted livelihoods including fishing and farming, and has hit cross-border trade and markets, adding that this has left one in ten of those uprooted without enough to eat. According to Mary-Ellen McGroarty, WFP country director for Chad, “we are dealing with a harsh climate and environment in a region which has limited infrastructure and development…it is a humanitarian crisis on top of a development crisis.”

While Lake Chad countries, backed by Benin, have vowed to defeat Bok Haram by using members of an 8,700-strong regional task force, security sources have disclosed that there are growing sings that national armies are instead acting alone.

Nigeria Likely to Miss Boko Haram Deadline

While Nigeria’s government vowed earlier this year to end Boko Haram’s six-year insurgency by this month, the fast approaching deadline looks likely to be missed with hit-and-run attacks continuing as the militant group in recent weeks has increased its tempo of attacks in the Lake Chad region despite a regional response, which so far has shown little sign of effect.

In August, newly elected President Muhammadu Buhari gave his military commanders until December to build on apparent gains in recapturing territory, which was seized by the insurgents in 2014. However despite further claims successes since then there has been no let-up in deadly suicide and bomb attacks. Regional analysts are now reporting that it will be nearly impossible for the government and military to meet the deadline as “Boko Haram is still in control of Borno North senatorial district,” adding that “there are still attacks occurring in Chibok, Buratia, Gwoza (in Borno state) and Buni Yadi (in Yobe), as well as in the Gulak region of northern Adamawa.” Despite the ongoing attacks, the Nigerian army has maintained that it has control of the situation, however the weekend announcement of the arrest of about a dozen suspects, which army officials disclosed were part of Bok Haram “sleeper cells” in the capital Abuja, has increased concerns that the ongoing military operations are pushing Boko Haram insurgents further out of northeastern Nigeria and into not only neighbouring states, including Niger, Cameroon and Chad, but further south, to areas that have been less affected by the insurgency. Furthermore, military officials have also disclosed that they have again begun operations against Boko Haram bases “deep inside” the Sambisa Forest in Borno, despite indications that fighters have now moved to islands on Lake Chad.

While President Buhari, a retired army general and former military ruler, has consistently vowed to approach the ongoing conflict differently from his predecessors, many were surprised that he had imposed such a deadline. The previous administration under former President Goodluck Jonathan had made repeated pledges of a swift end to the conflict. However all of these pledges came and went, which affected the government’s and military’s credibility. While President Buhari promised to restructure the county’s military, which was hit by complaints that money and weapons were not reaching frontline troops despite massive government defense spending, there have been minimal signs of an immediate overhaul. So far the major changes have been the redeployment of the high command to the Borno state capital, Maiduguri, and a claimed upsurge in the morale of troops.

Since announcing the deadline in August, President Buhari has been more cautious. In September, he warned that guerrilla-style tactics would persist, while on Monday, he told army top brass that the deadline “should serve as a guide.” The ongoing conflict in northeastern Nigeria, and its spread to neighbouring countries, has proven the underlining need for a multilateral response and greater coordination rather than unilateral action. The Nigerian military has been focusing on defeating Boko Haram as a conventional fighting force. However little has been done in order to tackle the root causes of the insurgency. Furthermore, a coordinated, regional approach to ending the insurgency still looks far off despite an increasing wave of suicide and bomb attacks outside Nigeria. A new 8,700-strong multi-national Joint Task Force (MNJTF), comprising of troops from Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Benin, was supposed to have been deployed in Late July however the African Union (AU)-backed force has yet to start operations, with no reason given for the lengthening delay and questions over whether the countries have the resources to commit.

Boko Haram Targets Nigerian Capital

Two bomb blasts ripped through the outskirts of the capital Abuja, including one target that was twice hit before by Boko Haram militants.

Friday’s explosions occurred near a police station in Kuje and at a bus stop in Nyanya at about 10:30 PM. The same bus station in Nyanya, which is located to the east of the capital, was targeted twice last year. In the first attack, on 14 April, at least 75 people were killed and it was claimed by the Islamists; while the second attack occurred on 1 May and left at least 16 people dead. Kuje, which is located near Abuja’s airport, is some 40 kilometres (25 miles) west of the city centre. It is also the seat of government. Its prison is reportedly holding dozens of Boko Haram prisoners who have been captured by troops. Nigeria’s National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) warned of casualties from the simultaneous explosions in Kuje and Nyanya and likened the explosives used to those in the areas that have ben the worst-hit by the group’s six-year insurgency. According to NEMA spokesman Manzo Ezekiel, “it was not an accidental explosion…definitely it was a bomb,” adding, “at this time we can only confirm the explosions. Our officers are on the ground. There are a number of dead but we can’t say anything about numbers now.” Ezekiel further disclosed that the latest blasts occurred almost simultaneously, adding that it appears to use “the same kind of explosives used in the insurgency.” Abuja was last attacked on 25 June this year, when 22 people were killed in a blast that targeted a popular shopping centre located in the heart of the capital. Boko Haram later claimed responsibility for the attack and a separate strike, which occurred later that day in the Apapa port district of the financial capital, Lagos.

 In a message that was posted on social media on Sunday evening, Boko Haram has claimed responsibility for twin bomb attacks that occurred on the outskirts of Abuja. According to authorities, at least 18 people were killed and 41 injured in the bombings, which occurred on Friday night in Juje and in Nyanya. The claim of responsibility on Twitter was signed by Islamic State in West Afica Province, used by Boko Haram since it pledged alleigants to the militants in Syria and Iraq in March. The message showed photographs of three men in combat fatigues, holding automatic weapons and in frton of the group’s insignia, and claimed that they had carried out “martyrdom operations.” On Saturday, police indicated that “preliminary investigations reveled the bomb blasts were carried out by two suicide bombers – a male and a female.”

Deadliest Week in Nigeria as Boko Haram Launches String of Attacks

On Thursday, two female suicide bombers killed at least thirteen people at a crowded market and a military checkpoint in northeastern Nigeria, in what is the fourth attack to occur this week. Over the past week, at least 162 people have been killed, including four suicide bombers. Boko Haram appears to be following a call recently issued by the Islamic State (IS) group to step up attacks during the holy month of Ramadan. Earlier this year, the Nigerian-based militant group pledged allegiance to IS.

Two suicide bomb blasts along a highway in northeastern Nigeria killed at least 13 people Thursday afternoon, in what is the latest in a string of almost daily attacks carried out by suspected Boko Haram militants. According to Borno state police chief Aderemi Opadokun, a female suicide bomber killed at least 10 people and injured thirteen in the village of Malari, which is located on the main road from Bama to Konduga. Minutes later, a woman in a taxi blew herself up at a military checkpoint, killing a soldier and two passengers. The second blast also occurred along the same road. A military source has indicated that in both attacks, the suicide bombers targeted crowded areas where locals sell fruit along the highway, which runs southeast of the state capital Maiduguri.

On Thursday, suspected Boko Haram militants killed nearly 150 people in northeastern Nigerian villages, targeting civilians as they prayed in mosques and shooting women who were preparing food at home. On the ground sources reported that dozens of militants stormed three remote villages in Borno state on Wednesday evening, setting houses ablaze in the bloodiest day of attacks by the extremist group since President Muhammadu Buhari came to power in May. A local has reported that gunmen killed at least 97 people in the town of Kukawa, the worst-affected village, with another local reporting that more than 50 militants stormed the village. Meanwhile in two other villages near the town of Monguno, gunmen killed 48 people and injured 11 others. One resident reported that the militants arrived on motorcycles and in vans. Kukawa is located around 50 kilometres (30 miles) away from the two villages near Monguno, with all three located near Lake Chad, which straddles, Niger, Chad, Nigeria and Cameroon, and which recently has become a focal point of the unrest.

Scores Killed In Nigerian President’s First Week in Office

As President Muhammadu Buhari marked his first week in office, the death toll from two blasts in northeastern Nigeria climbed to 35 on Friday, raising the total number killed in suspected Boko Haram attacks to 82.

This week’s violence comes as President Buhari embarked on his first foreign trip since taking office, visiting neighbouring Chad and Niger, which along with Cameroon, are Nigeria’s key allies in the battle against Boko Haram’s on going uprising. During his trip, Buhari urged closer regional security cooperation, while thanking troops from Nigeria’s neighbours for their efforts to date. The newly elected Nigerian president has vowed to crush the militant group, however last weeks spate of bombings has highlighted the severity of the challenge.

Two blasts rocked northeastern Nigeria on Thursday, killing at least six people, just hours before President Muhammadu Buhari urged closer regional cooperation to defeat Boko Haram. According to officials, the first explosion occurred in the Borno state capital Maiduguri, which has been hit by a spate of bombings in recent days. The incident occurred when a truck carrying firewood rammed into a checkpoint outside a military barracks. Police and locals have reported that at least four soldiers were killed in this explosion, which one resident called a “suicide attack.” The second blast occurred at a busy market in Yola, the capital of neighbouring Adamawa state. At least two people were killed in the second incident and some 30 others were injured. While there was no claim of responsibility, both incidents will likely be blamed on Boko Haram. Just hours before these latest attacks, President Buhari arrived in Chad’s capital N’Djamena, for talks with his counterpart Idriss Deby on tackling Boko Haram. According to a statement from the office of the Chadian President, Deby has “reaffirmed Chad’s involvement and availability” to work with Nigeria.

At least eleven people were killed Wednesday in an explosion in Maiduguri. According to Danlami Ajaokuta, a civilian vigilante assisting that military against Boko Haram in the Baga Road area, “we have so far recovered six dead bodies. We are still working at the scene, so the casualties may rise.” Ajaokuta indicated that the blast, which occurred at 5:30 PM (1630 GMT), happened at a garage opposite a military unit and it appeared to have been caused by explosives that were left nearby. Since last Friday, Maiduguri, which has been a regular target for Boko Haram Islamists, has been hit four times.

On Tuesday, suspected Boko Haram militants launched a renewed attack on Maiduguri, just days after the military repelled an assault on the key city. At least thirteen people were killed Tuesday in a suicide attack at a busy cattle market in the northeastern city of Maiduguri. According to Red Cross officials and locals, the blast in the Borno state capital occurred at around 1:00PM (1200 GMT) as traders were wrapping up business for the day. The northeast spokesman of the Nigerian Red Cross, Umar Sadiq, indicated that there were 13 dead and 24 injured who were taken to two city hospitals for treatment. While there was no immediate claim of responsibility for the latest attack, it bore the hallmarks of the group, with one official indicated that the victims were “carefully targeted,” adding “the bomber chose the most crowded part of the market and set off his bombs.” The attack came after Boko Haram militants again targeted Maiduguri with rocket-propelled grenades in the early hours of Tuesday after hitting the city in a similar attack on Saturday. Residents reported that the militants arrived in the Moronti area of the city by river during the early hours of Tuesday however they were unable to advance further because of wide ditches and embankments that were dug by soldiers around the city limits. According to locals, the militants then began shelling Ajillari Cross, which is located about three kilometres (2 miles) away. One local stated, “we were bombarded by RPG’s (rocket-propelled grenades) by Boko Haram from Moronti…We all left our homes for fear of being hit inside. It was dark so we could see the trajectory of the RPG’s, which were red with heat… Soon afterwards, we saw troops in trucks moving towards Moronti and then a fighter jet also deployed not long afterwards.”

Tagged as: Boko Haram, Borno State, Cameroon, Chad, Maiduguri, Muhammadu Buhari, Niger, Nigeria