The Nigerian army says it lost thirty-nine soldiers in recent attacks by Boko Haram insurgents, and not one hundred and eighteen as reported. The Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai in a statement said fifty-three soldiers were wounded in the attacks.
Burutai said a sudden rise in Boko Haram attacks over the last three months has forced the Nigerian military to fine-tune its counter-insurgency operations in the war-ravaged North-east. The army chief also said the terrorists now use drones and foreign fighters in their operations.
Buratai described the exploits of the jihadists as “daring,” saying it threatened to erode the previously recorded achievements in the counter-terrorism efforts.
The Boko Haram war recently suffered a heavy setback when troop formations in the north-east came under series of attacks by the insurgents in the space of two weeks. The Islamic State in West Africa, a faction of the Boko Haram sect, claimed responsibility for the attacks.
While the army had initially admitted the attacks, it had described the high number of casualties being reported as “misinformation.” Burutai said each of the attacks were “successfully repelled” and that “several members of the terrorists were killed”.
The army chief said the attacks have put the military’s resolve to test, but assured the insurgency would be uprooted before long.
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