3 suspected Boko Haram members nabbed in Yde

Three people suspected to be agents of the Nigerian Islamic sect, Boko Haram, are being detained and interrogated at the Gendarmerie Headquarters in Yaounde.

According to security sources, the trio was nabbed a week ago. They were reportedly on a reconnaissance mission of testing the grounds to see where the sect could possibly strike in Cameroon’s political capital.

An inside source who saw the three men being taken into detention, told The Post that the suspects looked quite innocuous – ‘like people who couldn’t harm a fly’.

Following the upsurge of the sect’s activities in the Northern part of the country, Cameroonian security forces are on the red alert. They have practically turned the heat on the sadists, killing many of them in the process.

On the flip side of the borders, over 400 members of the sect have been killed in different operations carried out by Nigerian soldiers of the 7th Division in different parts of Borno State, security sources say.

A report published by Leadership, a Nigeria-based newspaper on September 16, holds that Boko Haram terrorists were staging, yet, another attack, days after soldiers had successfully repelled their attack on Konduga village where over 250 of them were killed.

The insurgents, who had suffered several defeats in the hands of soldiers, were said to have recorded another bad outing, September 16, when the soldiers stationed there, effectively repelled them by killing yet scores more of them.

The paper further states that the mean terrorists who seemed confused, given the repeated failed attempts to march over Konduga in order to invade Maiduguri, had also met another disastrous end at Ngamdu village of Kaga Local Government Area, LGA, about 100km from Maiduguri, when they attempted to take over the Kano-Maiduguri highway in the morning of September 17.

On his part, a civilian Joint Task Force, JTF, official, Bashir Abbas, who usually follows deployed Nigerian troops during such attacks, confirmed to journalists in Maiduguri that the Konduga attack, just like the previous one, was forewarned.

Abbas said: “The Tuesday night attack was expected, and the soldiers really mobilised for an ambush attack on the Boko Haram members who divided themselves in three groups.

They tactically sent the first group, to face the military as they usually do, but, unknown to them; the soldiers had also strategically taken cover and were waiting... On getting to the middle of the town, the military opened fire, killing over 100 of them; they were able to recover one armoured personnel carrier, three vehicles mounted with anti-aircraft, several motorcycles and ammunition”.

Nigerian website, Nigeria Camera, after visiting Konduga, said residents confirmed that, the members of the sect attempted to attack Konduga from two directions with over 500 fighters, when the military fought and defended the Local Government, killing over 200 on the spot, before the insurgents retreated.

After the attack was repelled, some of the Boko Haram fighters went through the forest and were heading towards Mafa Local Government Area, when soldiers laid ambush on them again, killing over 100, while the rest escaped with bullet wounds.

Recounting what happened the following day, Bashir said after the military had successfully crushed the first group, the second group appeared, followed by the third group, but they were all crushed by the military.

Hear him: “On the morning of September 17, the gunmen mobilised some of their members from around Yobe axis with the intention of crossing over to Konduga, but were intercepted by soldiers who acted on a tip-off, and confronted them with yet another ambush attack that got about 150 of them killed in Ngamdu village.”

On September 18, 100 elements of the sect who came up to attack travelers along Maiduguri-Potiskum Road met their Waterloo when the detachment along that route engaged in a fierce battle, killing all of them.