KADUNA, Nigeria – Nigeria’s army chief told his soldiers they needed to be in “war mood” to fight the Islamist sect of Boko Haram, suggesting that peace talks with a sect that has killed hundreds of people this year were not on the government’s agenda.
Nigeria’s attempts at mediated dialogue with the group have repeatedly failed. The latest talks broke off last month after details of negotiations were leaked to the media.
In Boko Haram’s home town of Maiduguri in the remote northeast, five sect members and one policeman were killed on Wednesday in an attack on a police station, authorities said.
“It is high time for you and your men to be in war mood to be able to deal with the current challenges,” Azubuike Ihejirika, Chief of Army Staff, told soldiers at an army workshop in the northern city of Kaduna.
He said more resources would be given to the army to help it combat what he described as terrorism. He expected the army to have “a better deal within this budget year”, which would mean “a lot more equipment being put back into service”.
On Easter Sunday, a car bomb near a church in Kaduna killed at least 36 people and another large undetonated bomb was found in Kano, Nigeria’s second largest city and scene of Boko Haram’s most deadly attack that killed over 180 people in January.
President Goodluck Jonathan has been criticised for not getting a grip on the insurgency and relying on a purely military approach.
During attacks over Easter weekend Jonathan was on holiday in the capital Abuja and the presidency did not respond to requests for comment.
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“Jonathan has lacked assertiveness in curtailing Boko Haram’s campaign,” said Roddy Barclay, West Africa analyst at Control Risks.
“Although he has ramped up security expenditure and militarised areas most affected by northern militancy, he has shown little commitment to tabling far-reaching reforms or making clear concessions that could go some way to addressing the root drivers of militancy.”
No group took responsibility for the Kaduna blast, but the apparent targeting of a Christian place of worship has stirred memories of a string of deadly assaults by Boko Haram on Christmas Day last year, including one at a church that killed at least 37 people and wounded more than 50.
Boko Haram, which wants Islamic law applied across Africa’s most populous nation and its members released from prison, has been blamed for almost daily attacks, mostly targeting the police in its home region in the northeast.
Boko Haram’s most deadly attacks have spread across the north and to Abuja, where a suicide bomber in August last year killed 25 people at United Nations headquarters.
Nigeria’s attempts at mediated dialogue with the group have repeatedly failed. The latest talks broke off last month after details of negotiations were leaked to the media.
In Boko Haram’s home town of Maiduguri in the remote northeast, five sect members and one policeman were killed on Wednesday in an attack on a police station, authorities said.
“It is high time for you and your men to be in war mood to be able to deal with the current challenges,” Azubuike Ihejirika, Chief of Army Staff, told soldiers at an army workshop in the northern city of Kaduna.
He said more resources would be given to the army to help it combat what he described as terrorism. He expected the army to have “a better deal within this budget year”, which would mean “a lot more equipment being put back into service”.
On Easter Sunday, a car bomb near a church in Kaduna killed at least 36 people and another large undetonated bomb was found in Kano, Nigeria’s second largest city and scene of Boko Haram’s most deadly attack that killed over 180 people in January.
President Goodluck Jonathan has been criticised for not getting a grip on the insurgency and relying on a purely military approach.
During attacks over Easter weekend Jonathan was on holiday in the capital Abuja and the presidency did not respond to requests for comment.
“Jonathan has lacked assertiveness in curtailing Boko Haram’s campaign,” said Roddy Barclay, West Africa analyst at Control Risks.
“Although he has ramped up security expenditure and militarised areas most affected by northern militancy, he has shown little commitment to tabling far-reaching reforms or making clear concessions that could go some way to addressing the root drivers of militancy.”
No group took responsibility for the Kaduna blast, but the apparent targeting of a Christian place of worship has stirred memories of a string of deadly assaults by Boko Haram on Christmas Day last year, including one at a church that killed at least 37 people and wounded more than 50.
Boko Haram, which wants Islamic law applied across Africa’s most populous nation and its members released from prison, has been blamed for almost daily attacks, mostly targeting the police in its home region in the northeast.
Boko Haram’s most deadly attacks have spread across the north and to Abuja, where a suicide bomber in August last year killed 25 people at United Nations headquarters.-Reuters
