This is not the first time the army is claiming to have killed Abubakar Shekau.
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“Their leader, so called “Abubakar Shekau”, is believed to be fatally wounded on his shoulders”, the statement by military spokesman Colonel Sani Kukasheka Usman added, without going into details on the source of its information.
The military said an “unprecedented and spectacular air raid” had hit the militants as they were performing Friday prayers in the sprawling Sambisa forest, the main base for a jihadist insurgency that is estimated to have left some 20,000 people dead and one million homeless.
He confirmed the deaths of three Boko Haram commanders – Abubakar Mubi, Malam Nuhu and Malam Hamman – and said several others were wounded in the attack on the Islamist group’s northeastern forest stronghold.
Hard days ahead for almost half a million children around the lake Chad region following warnings of severe malnutrition due to drought and repeated attacks from Islamic sect Boko Haram.
Boko Haram would later pledge allegiance to the Islamic State – becoming the self-proclaimed caliphate’s West Africa province.
Boko Haram transforms “the most vulnerable among us into killers”, Mr Kerry said, describing how in its quest to destroy knowledge, the group destroys schools, burns books, murders teachers and kidnaps students.
“To effectively counter violent extremism, we have to ensure that military action is coupled with a reinforced commitment to values like integrity, good governance, education, compassion, security and respect for human rights”, Mr. Kerry said. “Nigeria and its neighbours are degrading Boko Haram’s capabilities”. However, the USA withdrew military support from the previous Nigerian government, under Goodluck Jonathan, over concerns about a poor human rights record. “While they are not flawless, they are conscious” of the issue, the official added.
But since President Muhammadu Buhari took office past year, United States officials have moved to sell as many as 12 light attack aircrafts to the country, according to Reuters. The US Congress has yet to approve the sale, however.
The Nigerian Army needs to note that it is not very important that Nigerians are fed with the news of Shekau’s death, when it can not accurately confirm if truly he is dead or not.
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“You have made a strong start at all levels of government”, Kerry said about Buhari.
