Boko haram crisis

An Improvised Explosive Device believed to have been planted by suspected members of Boko Haram on Sunday exploded at the Gamboru Market in Maiduguri, Borno State. No death was recorded but four persons were critically injured in the incident which occurred barely 24 hours after 26 persons were reportedly killed when the sect members bombed a Monday market in the city. The sect had on Friday night attempted to invade the troubled state capital but was repelled by the military. It was gathered that 16 people lost their lives to the bid. A member of the youth vigilante group in the town, Abba Modu, told our correspondent on the telephone on Sunday that the 1.30pm attack on Gamboru Market caused many residents to flee the streets. “We know that the Boko Haram people hid the explosive in the market to kill traders and their customers again. But we thank Allah that nobody died. Four people, who were seriously wounded have been taken to the hospital by security agents,” he said. Just as Modu spoke, the Chairman of Fika Local Government Area of Yobe State, Baba Abare, told journalists that Boko Haram insurgents had on Saturday attacked Fika and Ngalda in the state. Abare said the insurgents, on arrival in the two communities, shot sporadically to scare people away so as to have ample opportunity to loot. He added that their major targets were shops from where they stole foodstuffs and beverages. Fika is 150 kilometres west of Damaturu, the Yobe state capital and shares common border with Gombe State . It was gathered from a resident , Ibrahim Mohammed, that the insurgents first launched their attack on Ngalda before moving to Fika where they torched the local government area secretariat, a magistrate court and the Divisional Police station. A top police source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the insurgents arrived the two towns in two Toyota Hilux vans which they used to flee with their loot. When contacted, the Yobe Police Commissioner, Markus Danladi, said the Joint Task Force was the only body authorised to speak on such matter. Nigeria, Egypt to partner in intelligence sharing, training Meanwhile, the Nigerian and Egyptian militaries are to collaborate on intelligence-sharing and training to combat the threats by Boko Haram and Islamic State of Iraq and Syria to destabilise the two countries. The Egyptian Foreign Affairs Minister, Sameh Shoukry, told journalists in Abuja on Saturday that President Muhammadu Buhari would soon visit Cairo for talks on military and bilateral relations between Egypt and Nigeria. According to him, Nigerian and Egyptian militaries would work together to degrade the capabilities of the two terrorist organisations and end the security crises in the North and West Africa. Shoukry,who observed that Boko Haram and ISIS had the same objectives of overthrowing the governments in Nigeria and Egypt, stressed that it would take a robust partnership between the two countries to exterminate the terrorist groups. He explained that the Egyptian Army had been tackling the ISIS terrorists with precision to reduce collateral damage,stressing that the fight against terrorists in Africa must be comprehensive and total. The minister said, “Egypt and Nigeria are facing terrorism and there is need to cooperate to deal with the challenge and other conflicts. Egypt looks forward to increasing relations with Nigeria Army in the areas of intelligence cooperation and training. We have recorded considerable victory against ISIS and the operations are undertaken with precision to avoid collateral damages, ISIS power is degraded.” Also in Abuja on Sunday, the Republic of South Sudan said it needed Nigeria to train its security personnel, many of whom were former rebels conscripted into the security agencies.