Nigeria launches special military force against Boko Haram

ABUJA, Aug. 16 — Nigeria on Tuesday launched a special
military force to enhance security network against terror group Boko Haram,
particularly in the northeast region.

Named “special mobile strike force,” the troops deployed from various
military units, are expected to bring vigor into the renewed onslaught
against Boko Haram, said Ibrahim Attahiru, commander of troops in the
theater of operation in the northeastern city of Maiduguri. Attahiru told
reporters in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, that the special military
team became necessary as one of the new approaches evolved by the military
to end acts of terrorism in the West African country. According to him,
soldiers deployed to the force were exposed to modern terrorism combat
techniques to enable them to crush the Boko Haram fighters, deny them
freedom of action and finally decimate them. “This specially selected force
with mixed equipment and platforms were deployed to achieve the conduct of
long range patrols and ambush deep into the hinterlands,” he said. The
Nigerian troops, which aimed to clear unrepentant Boko Haram fighters from
the shores of the most populous African country, have been sustaining the
tempo in their fight against terrorists. In the past two months, the
Nigerian troops had intensified its campaign against the terrorists,
killing and arresting dozens of Boko Haram fighters. A bomb factory in
Borno was also destroyed.Boko Haram has killed more than 20,000 and
displaced 2.3 million people in its attacks since 2009. – XINHUA