Major-General Chris Olukolade, the Director of Defence Information has said that the military operation in Sambisa forest is in progress.
Major-General Chris Olukolade, the Director of Defence Information, also defined the reports that Boko Haram insurgents reclaimed Mafa in Borno state as fake.
He said: “The truth is that an attempt by a group of fleeing terrorists, who strayed towards the town and engaged in their typical suicide attack, was duly repelled by troops.”
Army spokesman said the claim by some media sources that militants chased out soldiers and seized Marte, another town, could not be confirmed as troops were busy elsewhere during the said attack.
Olukolade added that efforts to track the insurgents who were reported to have attacked the town had not specified their presence as claimed.
“Surveillance activities are however ongoing although there has been no indication of the large number of terrorists as being claimed in some reports attributed to anonymous sources.”
Army chief said the Boko Haram fighters are “certainly” no longer capable of that level of coordinated action.
The military also rejected the report that soldiers had withdrawn from the Sambisa forest, said to be a lair for militants.
“Troops have not retreated from Sambisa forest as claimed by same sources. Rather, the operation is progressing and gaining increasing momentum towards clearing all terrorists hideouts in the forest,” Olukolade added.
He urged the media to neglect fabrications being churned out by some supposed Boko Haram supporters trying to encourage the terrorists who he said were in confusion.
“The truth is that the operation to decimate them from Nigerian territories is progressing well. The military will not be dissuaded by the resurgence of false reports on the operations. The progress will be prosecuted as necessary.”
Mafa is a gate way to Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. Alongside Marte, it was one of key towns reclaimed by Nigerian troops before the recent polls.
There were reports that militants numbering around 2000 gunmen attacked Marte town on Thursday, April 23rd, and involved Nigerian troops in a gun battle, forcing the soldiers to flee the town.
Nigerian troops with warplanes started the operation on the last known stronghold of the Boko Haram, the Sambisa forest, on Wednesday, April 22 to rescue the Chibok girls, who were abducted a year ago and to finally defeat Boko Haram’s six-year-old insurgency.
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