A statement on Thursday by PRNigeria, the media advisory for government security agencies, said a large number of dead bodies of some of their hostages or those who resisted the insurgents have been discovered by Nigerian troops.
“Aside from those whose bodies were thrown inside wells, others were also said to have been executed on the River Bama bridge as the terrorists fled the town.When contacted, Defence spokesman, Major-General Chris Olukolade, declined commenting on specific atrocities by the terrorists, saying specific details would only be given after the ongoing search of the town and its environments is concluded.
“Civilians who have been cooperating with troops also narrated horrendous tales of the brutality of the terrorists while they held sway and ruled with an iron hand, executing their own version of religious jurisprudence,” PRNigeria quoted military sources as stating.
“An intelligence officer confirmed that the cordon and search of the town was continuing while some persons in the town are also being interrogated by troops.
“Military and security sources confirmed to PRNigeria that as troops advanced on Bama, the terrorists embarked on a killing and maiming spree.
“Military medical teams and emergency workers have been attending to survivors and evacuating internally displaced persons as screening of the town continues,” the statement said.
With the dislodgement of terrorists from most of their locations in the North-east and especially Bama, mop-up operations by troops have been revealing the heart-rending atrocities perpetrated while the terrorists held the towns and villages captive.
More evidence of Boko Haram’s atrocities and crimes against humanity emerged yesterday with reports showing that members of the sect also killed dozens of women who were forced to marry Boko Haram fighters before a battle with Nigerian troops in Bama.
According to AFP, five witnesses, who recounted the massacres, said the Islamists feared they would be killed by advancing soldiers or separated from their wives when they fled the town.
They killed the women to prevent them from subsequently marrying soldiers or other so-called non-believers, they added.
“The terrorists said they will not allow their wives to be married to infidels,” said Sharifatu Bakura, 39, a mother of three.
According to Bakura’s account, which was supported by others, Boko Haram fighters received word of a military assault on Bama, Borno’s second largest city after the state capital, Maiduguri.
The insurgents had decided to flee to the nearby town of Gwoza before the troops’ arrival but first decided “to kill their wives so that nobody will remarry them,” she said.
Bakura’s husband was killed by the insurgents four months ago but she was spared from a forced marriage because she was visibly pregnant.
Boko Haram forcibly married scores of women in Bama after seizing it in September. Nigeria’s military announced the recapture of the town on Monday.
Witnesses, who were taken under military protection this week to Borno's capital Maiduguri, 73 kilometres away, said the killing of women began 10 days before Bama was liberated.
The Islamists said “if they kill their wives, they would remain pious until both of them meet again in heaven, where they would re-unite,” said Salma Mahmud, another witness.
A vigilante, who fought alongside the military in the battle to retake Bama, Abba Kassim, said he saw “dozens of women’s corpses” in the town.
While other witnesses reported a similarly high casualty figure, the numbers were impossible to verify.
Nigeria’s national security spokesman Mike Omeri told AFP he would try to verify the reports while the military could not be immediately reached for comment.
In another incident, the Kano State Police Command yesterday confirmed the arrest of a middle-aged suspected suicide bomber at the popular Unguwar Uku bus station along Zaria road in Kano.
The spokesman of the police in the state, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Magaji Musa Majiya, informed THISDAY that the arrest happened when the suspect who was carrying luggage, refused to be screened by the security guards manning the bus park.
Majiya said following the refusal by the suspect, a mob attacked him resulting in him being injured.
“When the suspect wanted to run away, the mob pursued him and beat him to unconsciousness before the arrival of security agents,” he said.
According to him, the anti-bomb unit of the command thoroughly checked the area and the suspect but did not find any explosive.
He however explained that a jacket of talismans, locally known as charms or juju, and muzzles of rifles were discovered on his body.
According to him, the suspect who was taken to an undisclosed hospital was responding to treatment.
Majiya said normalcy was restored to the area, as socio-economic activities picked up after the incident.
He however advised the public to report suspected characters to the nearest security outfits for prompt action.
He also warned the people in the state against taking the law into their hands and thanked residents for their continued support and cooperation.
Meanwhile, just a few days after Chadian troops liberated Gamboru-Ngala on the Nigerian-Chadian border, the terror group, Boko Haram, yesterday attacked the town killing 20 persons in the process.
It was gathered that the onslaught by Boko Haram was successful because Gamboru-Ngala was left unguarded after the Chadian troops liberated it from the insurgents.
According to a source, the insurgents yesterday led attacks on three Borno villages, killing not less than 20 civilians near the Camerounian border.
The source said many Nigerians from the area had to flee into Kusihri village in Cameroun.
He said the insurgents stormed Gamboru-Ngala town and set many homes ablaze, shot indiscriminately and in the process killed 20 persons.
He said some members of the youth vigilantes in the area informed him that they heard heavy gunshots from all angles, and many had to flee into Cameroun.
One of them, he said, told them on the phone that he saw 15 corpses lying on the path while the whereabouts of many residents of the area were unknown.
He added: “Many people fled into Cameroun and Chadian territories but I can’t tell the casualty figure now please.”
In a BBC Hausa service broadcast monitored in Maiduguri, it was reported that the Chadian troops said 18 people were killed and many homes razed by insurgents.
Speaking on the rampaging sect Thursday, President Goodluck Jonathan for the umpteenth time assured Nigerians that the terror group would be completely crushed by Nigerian troops.
The president made the pledge in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital, during a campaign rally in the city.
He informed the people of the North-east that the federal government was committed to wiping out Boko Haram completely from the zone and the country.
“We are not yet completely saved from the hands of these criminal elements because some of them are living with us. They can sneak in and out with their improvised explosive devices and cause damage, especially at soft targets.
“But we are working day and night, both the security services and the intelligence services, to make sure that we continue to clean up our country until we get this Boko Haram menace behind us.
“Fortunately, we are here today. So thank you for the patience and thank you for the reception. For me, I am a member of the emirate council as a title holder; I am in my palace.
“Let me also convey the sincere condolences of the federal government and our empathies to you on the number of deaths that have been caused by the excesses of Boko Haram.
“It is regrettable that some Nigerians have been fooled by a few people to commit such callous acts – killing men, women, children, innocent people and destroying properties. But we thank God that at least their main bases have been cleaned up by soldiers.
“It is unfortunate that some group of people became mad men and have caused such havoc. It is very regrettable, but the federal government is totally committed to routing Boko Haram. We are lucky that as we are speaking today there is no territory in this state that is in the hands of Boko Haram again and the federal government will not allow them to take over any territory in Yobe State again.
“You know that they have been sneaking in and out to wreak havoc but the security services and the intelligence services are working day and night to make sure that this stops. Security is key to development because without security you cannot develop,” Jonathan said.
He stated that improving security is key to his administration, adding that the Great Green Wall (GGW) project started by his government was aimed at tackling desert encroachment and ushering prosperity to the region.
“By the time we finish the Great Green Wall our farmers will have places to farm; they will have places to rear their cattle, our children will have parks to play and wealth will be created,” the president said.
Earlier, the Emir of Damaturu, Alhaji Shehu Hashemu, had thanked the president for citing a federal university in Gashua, for his leadership, and for waging a successful war against terrorism.
He said the state had been living in fear of the insurgents in the past but normalcy was being restored due to the successes of the military against the terrorists.
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