President Goodluck Jonathan says fighters from insurgent
group Boko Haram have traveled to the Middle East for
training with Islamic State militants.
Jonathan declined to name the countries where the fighters
were allegedly trained. But in an interview with VOA on
Wednesday, he said he’s long suspected Boko Haram of
having alliances with international extremist groups.
“So, we know the links are there. But even now, we may
not know the degree of linkages as to how much funds are
coming in from them, the kind of volume of weapons
coming in from them, the nationalities coming from them,”
Jonathan said.
“But the training, because some of the Boko Haram
members go to have their training in the ISIS camp and
come back,” he added
In the interview, Jonathan credited both the intervention of
Nigeria’s neighbours as well as the acquisition of new
weapons for turning the tide against the militants.
He hit back at criticisms that foreign troops aren’t being
allowed to push into Boko Haram strongholds deep in
Nigerian territory. He said Cameroon previously denied
Nigeria permission to pursue Boko Haram into its territory,
and added that restrictions on foreign troops were matters
of coordination.
“I think the idea is that look, for any major aggression, we
should know. Where possible, let some Nigerian soldiers
also be with you,” the President said.
He also said that foreign technicians are present in the
northeast to teach Nigerian troops on how to use their new
weapons, since there wasn’t time to train the troops before
they were deployed.
“So we now have this technical people who are trainers and
technicians, who are to train our people on how to use
them, and technicians that help the maintenance, at the
same time training our people how to maintain this
equipment,” Jonathan said.
He said two unnamed companies were involved in the
training but declined to offer nationalities or numbers of the
trainers.
Jonathan dismissed the suggestion that Boko Haram’s
insurgency had come to define his time in office.
“Yes, it’s a major security issue, it’s the number one
security issue we have as a nation. But definitely, you
cannot define us by Boko Haram,” he said.
As the multinational offensive continues, Jonathan
predicted that the northeastern states of Yobe and
Adamawa would be cleared of Boko Haram territory before
the middle of next week. He said he hopes neighbouring
Borno State, where the group started, will be cleared in the
next three weeks.
But Jonathan said he expects Boko Haram to continue
bombing markets and bus stops. He says the government’s
strategy is to improve intelligence gathering as well as job
and educational prospects in the northeast as a long-term
strategy to destroy the group. CLICK HERE TO READ FULL AND TOUCHING NIGERIAN CELEBRITIES BIOGRAPHY AND SCANDALS
No comments:
Post a Comment
Select "Anonymous" As Your Profile Or Login To Your "Google Account" Post A Comment!