Africa

Nigeria army destroys 10 Boko Haram camps in Borno State

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The Nigerian army has made fresh gains in its fight against Takfiri Boko Haram terrorists, overrunning 10 militant camps in the country’s northeast.

Defense spokesman Chris Olukolade said in a statement on Sunday that security forces destroyed the Boko Haram camps in the terrorist group’s Sambisa Forest stronghold in the state of Borno.

Olukolade added that a number of terrorists were killed in the offensive and that a landmine explosion killed one soldier and injured two others.

The defense spokesman said the military operation continues in both Sambisa and other areas.

“The operation to clear the terrorists in Sambisa and other forests is continuing as troops in all fronts have been alerted to be on the lookout for fleeing terrorists,” said Olukolade, adding, “The Nigeria Air Force is maintaining an active air surveillance to track the movement of terrorists for appropriate action as the operation continues.”

The gains came a day after an attack killed seven people and injured scores of others at a crowded bus station in neighboring Yobe State.

The military operation is part of an offensive by the Nigerian army to remove the Takfiri terrorists in the northeast of the country. A regional military coalition of Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon has claimed a series of major victories against Boko Haram since launching sweeping offensives against the militant group in February.

Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is forbidden,” controls large parts of northeastern Nigeria. Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria are the four African countries that have been directly affected by the growing threat of Boko Haram in recent months.

Some 15,000 people have been killed and about 1.5 million displaced as a result of Boko Haram violence since 2009.

Boko Haram recently pledged allegiance to the ISIL terrorist group, which is mainly operating in Iraq and Syria.

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