24 worshippers killed in Adamawa mosque blasts – Police

24 worshippers killed in Adamawa mosque blasts – Police

Scene of a bomb explosion

The police have confirmed 24 worshippers were killed in a twin-explosion on Tuesday at a mosque in Mubi, Adamawa State, North-east Nigeria.

The blasts occurred while worshippers were holding the Zuhr (afternoon) prayer.

The police spokesperson in the state, Othman Abubakar, a superintendent of police, said the first of the blasts occurred at about 1:00 p.m.

‘’While people were evacuating the victims of the first blast, another explosion occurred,” he told PREMIUM TIMES.

‘’As I am talking to you now, 24 persons are confirmed dead. The scene has been cordoned-off by the Anti-bomb squad and other security personnel,’’ Mr Abubakar said.

Eyewitnesses had earlier reported that ‘’many lives were lost and several persons injured.’’

The explosion was allegedly triggered by a teenage boy wearing a suicide vest.

Garba Habu, a local resident, said he counted over eight corpses at the scene.

‘’A boy of about 18-19 -years wearing a suicide vest was said to have entered the mosque along with other worshippers. Immediately after the prayers, he detonated the bomb,” he said.

Another resident, Isa Danladi, said he was about to leave his house near the mosque when he heard the blast

“Many people died on the spot and several others were taken to hospital with severe injuries,” he said.

“The mosque’s roof was blown off. The prayer was mid-way when the bomber detonated the explosives. This is obviously the work of Boko Haram,” he said.

Haruna HammanFuro, head of Adamawa State Emergency Management Agency, described the blast as “devastating”, saying there were “high casualties”.

‘’It was a twin-blast and the detail is sketchy but we are in touch with our partners of Red Cross and others that are helping now.

‘’For now dead bodies are being evacuated and those injured have been taken to hospitals. Right now we are on our way to Mubi,’’ he said.

There was a suicide attack last November on a mosque at Kunu Araha, a northern suburb of Mubi, which also killed dozens of woshippers.

No group has claimed responsibility for Tuesday’s carnage but many believe Boko Haram to be behind it.

The insurgents briefly overran Mubi in late 2014 as they rampaged across North-east Nigeria, seizing towns and villages in a quest to establish an Islamic state.

The insurgents changed the town’s name to Madinatul Islam, or “City of Islam” , during their occupation.

But it has been peaceful since the Nigerian military and civilian militias ousted recovered the town, which is a commercial hub and host of the Adamawa State University.

In recent months, Boko Haram’s activities had been concentrated in the far north of the state around Madagali, near the boundary with Borno State.

There have been repeated suicide bombings in the area, which lies close to the Sambisa Forest in Borno where the militants had a base.

Boko Haram fighters are also said to be hiding in the Mandara mountains in the east of Adamawa State and on the border with Cameroon.

Convicted Boko Haram members can't be sentenced to death- Mallam Abubakar Malami

Convicted Boko Haram members can't be sentenced to death- Mallam Abubakar Malami

The Attorney General of the Federation, Mallam Abubakar Malami, who was represented by Sylvester Imahanobe at the launch of amnesty’s report on Global Death Sentences and Executions 2015, in Abuja, yesterday said that convicted Boko Haram members could not be sentenced to death because they were tried under the Terrorism Prevention Act.

 He said:

“Terrorists in Nigeria are tried under the Terrorism Prevention Act which does not carry death penalty. That is why even those Boko Haram members, who have been convicted cannot be executed because the maximum sentence prescribed by the law is life sentence.”

He said they are willing to support whatever bill Amnesty International proposes in regards to the abolition of death sentence because according to him, studies conducted have shown that the death penalty has not stopped people from committing crimes.

He also said that they are working towards making sure that the prison system was corrective and not punitive.

Source: Vanguard

Cameroonian troops hand over suspected Boko Haram terrorists to the Nigerian Army, hostages rescued

Cameroonian troops hand over suspected Boko Haram terrorists to the Nigerian Army, hostages rescued

This is a statement issued by the Acting Director Army Public Relations, Colonel Sani Kukasheka Usman: 

"The cooperation with our neighbours have brought renewed vigour and is yielding fruitful result in the fight against the Boko Haram terrorists.

For instance, apart from recording tremendous success, troops of 26 Task Force Brigade, have married up with Cameroonian forces for joint operations in Kirawa junction.

Although they have not met any of the terrorists in the axis of advance, they rescued 8 men, 36 women and 68 children in the area.

 

To further consolidate on the cordial relationship, the Commander of Cameroonian 1st Battalion, paid courtesy call on his counterpart, the Commanding Officer of 121 Task Force Battalion in Pulka. The visiting unit assisted with the demining of a section of the road between Kirawa Junction to Pulka and handed over 2 suspected Boko Haram terrorists to the Nigerian unit.

Sadly however, one of the visiting unit’s vehicle ran into an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), buried along Pulka-Ngoshe road in which an officer and 8 of their soldiers sustained injuries.

 

Unfortunately, the officer died while being evacuated to Douala by air.

We wish to commiserate with the Cameroonian forces for the incident and the demise of the officer.

 

May his soul rest in peace and give his colleagues speedy recovery.

Similarly, troops of 113 Battalion on patrol to Ngwala cleared Boko Haram terrorists’ camps at Ngorta and Aritimie villages. The troops also came across the terrorists market at the area. However, on sighting the troops the suspected Boko Haram terrorists ran and abandoned their supplies.

The patrol also conducted cordon and search operations around Ngwala and recovered 2 pick up vehicles and 12 motorcycles belonging to the fleeing Boko Haram terrorists. The market has been closed indefinitely.

It is pertinent to report that troops morale in the theatre of operation is very high and they are ever determined to clear remnants of Boko Haram terrorists wherever they may be in the North Eastern part of our country.

Thank you for your kind and usual cooperation."

Possible locations of the kidnapped Chibok girls located - Nigerian Air Force

Possible locations of the kidnapped Chibok girls located - Nigerian Air Force

The Nigerian Air Force says it has located the possible location of the abducted Chibok girls. The Director of Public Relations at the Nigerian Air Force, Group Captain Ayodele Famuyiwa, told Channels TV that the Air Force is abstaining from attacking the area to make sure that the girls are not hit. 

He explained that the latest aerial bombardment of Sambisa forest had been aimed at the logistics base of the Boko Haram sect and not areas where the Chibok girls could be located.

"We have no fears that the girls are not there because that particular location has been under surveillance for quite a while and we suspected maybe its a kind of ammunition depot or maybe a workshop that they are using as their logistics place. Once you take off the logistics base, of course you gradually weaken the resolve of the enemy to be able to prosecute any campaign," he said.

Explaining some of the tactics used by the Air Force to locate the girls, Famuyiwa said:

"The UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) has become a force multiplier for us because its cheaper to run these platforms, you are not putting men there (and) the risk of  losing human beings is greatly reduced. Again the UAVs have the capability to be airborne for up to eleven hours and its quite cheap to maintain. So, we have been able to employ the UAV to a great extent to carry out reconnaissance and surveillance basically for intelligence gathering on the activities of the Boko Haram."

He said that the UAVs have also helped the Air Force to understand the terrorists’ pattern of movement and "how to be able to counter them should they want to strike or spring any surprise".

Source: Channels TV

Nigerian suicide bomber gets cold feet, refuses to kill

Nigerian suicide bomber gets cold feet, refuses to kill

Strapped with a booby-trapped vest and sent by Boko Haram to kill as many people as possible, the young teenage girl tore off the explosives and fled as soon as she was out of sight of her handlers.
Her two companions, however, completed their grisly mission and walked into a crowd of hundreds at Dikwa refugee camp in northeast Nigeria and blew themselves up, killing 58 people.

Later found by local self-defense forces, the girl's tearful account is one of the first indications that at least some of the child bombers used by Boko Haram are aware that they are about to die and kill others.

"She said she was scared because she knew she would kill people, but she was also frightened of going against the instructions of the men who brought her to the camp," said Modu Awami, a self-defense fighter who helped question the girl".

Her story was corroborated when she led soldiers to the unexploded vest, Awami said Thursday by phone from the refugee camp, which holds 50,000 people who have fled Boko Haram's Islamic uprising.

The girl is in custody and has given officials information about other planned bombings that has helped them increase security at the camp, Satomi Ahmed, chairman of the Borno State Emergency Management Agency, told reporters.
Awami said he had no information about how the girl came to be with Boko Haram. The extremists have kidnapped thousands of people and there are fears they may be turning their captives into weapons.

An army bomb disposal expert has told the AP that some suicide bombs are detonated remotely, so the carriers may not have control over when the bomb goes off.
Even two days later, it's difficult to say exactly how many people died at Dikwa because there were corpses and body parts everywhere, including in the cooking pots, Awami said.

"Women, children, men and aged persons all died," he said by telephone. "I cannot say the exact number as some cannot be counted because the bodies were all mangled."

Source: AP

How 2 Female suicide bombers blew themselves up and killed 56 in IDPs camp

How 2 Female suicide bombers blew themselves up and killed 56 in IDPs camp

No fewer than 56 people have been killed in an Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) camp in Borno State after two female suicide bombers blew themselves up.
News broke on Wednesday of the twin blasts that occurred Tuesday morning, which killed 56 people at the camp which houses about 50,000 in Dikwa, northeast Nigeria and injured another 78, Reuters reported. A third female bomber who was arrested gave officials additional information on the attacks.

 Officials blamed Boko Haram for the bombings which, was not known about until yesterday because of the disruption to telephone services.

Suspected recruiter of terrorists for ISIS, others, arrested in Nigeria

Suspected recruiter of terrorists for ISIS, others, arrested in Nigeria

The Department of State Security released a statement today stating that a suspected recruiter of ISIS, and others, have been arrested in Nigeria. Read the full statement signed by DSS official, Tony Okpuiyo after the cut...

DSS Arrests ISIS Recruiter and Other Terrorists -Planned Terrorists Attacks in States Aborted

In line with the Service statutory mandate  to decisively and continually provide actionable intelligence as well as act to degrade persons and groups that threaten  internal security in the Country, the Service initiated series of tactical operations, involving raids and enforcement actions against identified criminal and extremist kingpins and syndicates across the country.

These recent operations have significantly degraded the key extremist groups and kidnapping gangs, terrorizing innocent citizens in the Country, particularly in the South-West, North-West and Middle-Belt regions of the Federation.
   
On 17th January, 2016, one Abdussalam Enesi YUNUSA, a recruiter for the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) was arrested in Kano. His arrest was sequel to available intelligence which indicated his terrorist antecedents and covert drive to indoctrinate and recruit susceptible youths in the country.

Prior to his arrest, YUNUSA had completed arrangements to embark on a journey to join an ISIS terrorist training camp in Libya, with other Nigerians whom he recruited for the ‘Islamic State’. These recruits include the trio of one Muhammed RABI’U, Yahaya Momoh JIMOH and Zainab SUNDAY (f). YUNUSA is a 400 level undergraduate student of the Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State, where he was studying for a degree in Information and Media Technology.

He was subsequently radicalized and became a member of an extremist cell, comprising of one IBRAHIM (fnu) and Abubakar LIGALI, whom he revealed are currently undergoing terrorist training in Libya. He listed one AMINU (fnu) and Ibrahim JIHADI (Nigeriene), as other ISIS agents operating in Nigeria and the West African sub-region. The cell was being funded by one Abu-sa’ad Al Sudani, a media expert with the extremist group using Western Union money transfers to fund the terrorist cell agenda. 

On 17th January, 2016, in Daura township of Daura LGA, Katsina State, another budding extremist cell affiliated to ISIS, was intercepted by the Service. One Ibrahim Mohammed DAURA, Zaharadeen SALISU and five other elements of the proscribed extremist group, Ansaru, were arrested by the Service. This group was discovered in an active stage, as its members were already co-ordinating themselves for attacks in Katsina and Kano States.

In the same vein, on 22nd January, 2016, one Obansa SALAMI, Ejide TIJANI aka Abu Uwaise II, Mohammed RABIU aka Ubida II, Zainab MOHAMMED and Abdulqadir Salisu AHMAD were arrested in Kano by this Service, while  migrating to Libya, with their immediate families including infants, in a bid to join ISIS. This group was apprehended after painstaking monitoring of its network and plans.

On 29th January, 2016, the Service arrested Mohammed Aliyu NDAKO in Kwara State. NDAKO is a seventeen (17) year old undergraduate student of a tertiary institution in the State. He was arrested sequel to credible intelligence on his plans with one Abdulkadir Salisu AHMAD a.k.a Daddy Tall, another student in Kano State, to carry out coordinated lone-wolf attacks on selected populated targets in Nigeria preferably worship centres or recreation venues. Suspect had hitherto been communicating with foreign extremist elements, while sourcing online terrorist training and support.

Within the window of these tactical operations, between the month of December 2015 and February 2016, the Service,  busted the  network of syndicated kidnap gangs spanning different regions in the country, especially Kebbi, Zamfara, Niger, Nasarawa, FCT, Oyo and Osun States. Foremost in this line, was the arrest of a gang of five (5) kidnappers, Abubakar HASSAN, Usman MUSA, Usman ADAMU and Idrisa Babangida AHMADU at Ife junction, Osun State, on 3rd  February, 2016.

On 5th February, 2016, the fifth member of the gang, Saidu ISYAKU was arrested at Ojo area, Oyo State. These kidnappers, Six (6) AK 47 rifles, five (5) magazines and about one thousand rounds of ammunition were recovered. This gang has been active in the South West axis of the country and were at advanced stages of kidnapping high value targets for huge ransom, before they were intercepted.

Another breakthrough in the fight against kidnapping was the killing of Abubakar MOHAMMED (aka BUBA), and an unidentified member of his group, on 8th February, 2016 close to Jebba Medical Centre, Jebba, Kwara State by security operatives as they tried to escape during a shootout with security operatives. MOHAMMED was a notorious kidnap kingpin known for his brutality and various acts of lawlessness. It is disheartening that this criminal and his men had terrorized, to no end, residents of the South West zone.  He was also linked to the kidnap of the elder statesman, Chief Olu Falae, in Ondo State.

In the wake of deliberate  vandalism of oil pipelines  by criminal elements in the South-South region, the Service arrested one Nengi Samuel IKIBA aka Kockman Abula, a notorious pipeline vandal on 27th January, 2016, in Bayelsa State. IKIBA confessed to vandalizing several pipelines in the State, including the 24” Agoda/Brass Oil pipeline at Idema community in Ogbia LGA of Bayelsa State. 

The modest success of the Service in its support to the Federal Government to achieve its desired economic objectives and stability may also be noted. To this effect, the DSS have arrested a group of fraudsters who had concluded plans to hack the Government Integrated Financial Management Information System (GIFMIS) domiciled in the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation in order to steal Four Billion, Five Hundred Million Naira (N4.5b) from the Treasury Single Account (TSA).

The gang was led by one Sunny OKOH, a hacker who  worked in collaboration with the trio of Uwem Udo EKPO, a Chief Program Analyst in the OAGF, Maxwell EKENE, a retired security operative and Dozie EGWU, based in Malaysia and who is now at large. The suspected fraudsters intended to use a software they had sourced and codes released to them by EKPO to hack Government accounts in the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and defraud the Government of this huge sum.

It is instructive to note that a credibility problem would have arisen over the TSA policy if these hackers had succeeded in their plan and thus lend credence to the critics of the policy that it ought not to have been introduced and implemented. For the avoidance of doubt, the suspects have been handed over to the EFCC for further investigations and prosecution.

It is pertinent to state that these successes were recorded as a result of proactive and credible intelligence offered by members of the public, sister security agencies and other stakeholders. This Service wish to state that it will continue to deploy every means necessary within its statutory mandate, and armbit of the law to ensure the security and safety of all law-abiding residents and citizens wherever they reside.

It is also germane to urge all and sundry to be extra-vigilant, as well as report any suspicious persons/groups or activities to relevant security agencies, for the sustenance of relative peace in the country

Boko Haram kills seven in suicide attack

Boko Haram kills seven in suicide attack
    

The Nigeria Army (file photo)

Boko Haram gunmen have mounted their first attacks since Nigeria’s government declared them “technically” defeated, killing seven people in a raid and suicide bombing, residents told AFP Wednesday.

The attacks happened on Tuesday in a village in Gwoza, Borno State, near Sambisa Forest, where the army is looking to flush out remnants of the sect.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who has made crushing the rebellion a priority, in December said a sustained counter-offensive had reduced the group’s ability to strike effectively.

The first attack happened in Izgeki village, said one resident, who gave his name as Isyaku, from the town of Mubi in neighbouring Adamawa state.

“I received information from my relatives who fled the attack… that some Boko Haram gunmen on bicycles attacked Izgeki across the river from Izghe on Tuesday morning where they killed two people.

“The attack forced villagers to cross the river into Izghe. The gunmen pursued them. One of them who had a suicide belt on him blew himself up near the market, killing five people.”

Izghe was previously attacked in February 2014 where more than 100 people were killed as the rebels torched homes, opened fire and set off explosives.

Thousands of residents fled the attack into Adamawa towards the town of Madagali and elsewhere but following the army’s recapture of territory, some managed to return and begin reconstruction.

Izghe is in the district of Gwoza, which Boko Haram captured in August 2014 and which the group’s shadowy leader Abubakar Shekau declared the centre of its self-styled caliphate.

Ayuba Chibok, an elder in the town of the same name, said there was also an attack in the nearby village of Nchiha at about 10pm on Tuesday.

“Luckily no-one was hurt but they (Boko Haram gunmen) looted food and burnt a large part of the village,” he added. Residents managed to flee.

Boko Haram kidnapped some 276 girls from their school in Chibok in April 2014 in a daring raid that captured world attention. Fifty seven escaped soon afterwards but 219 are still being held.