Troops Get New Arms And Soldiers Express Desire To Return To The Front And To Capture Shekau

Reports coming out from the field in the North East where
soldiers are currently engaged in a war against the Boko
Haram terrorists reveal an uptick in the morale of the
Nigerian troops.

The reason for the excitement in the Nigerian camp is the
string of victories achieved by the military which has been
put down to the arrival of sophisticated armaments and
the decision of senior military officers to lead the war
against terror directly which also influenced the change of
some commanders.

A source who spoke to a national daily said that ”Some of
the successes recorded in recovery of big towns in the
Northeast were due to deployment of new strategies,
improved disciplinary measures, and sincerity of
participating countries in the regional alliance and the
acquisitions of latest equipment.

”In the past, colonels have led direct attacks in accordance
with military tradition, but because of the large scale
desertions recorded, Generals then decided to directly lead
the war and this has greatly boosted morale.

“Many of the troops that earlier deserted have returned
while others have expressed desire to return to the front.”
Recently, five key towns were reclaimed from the hands of
the terrorists – Baga, Monguno, Marte, Gamboru Ngala and
Dikwa.

Now, Nigerian troops have been mandated to ensure that
Boko Haram leader Imam Abubakar Shekau is captured
alive before the elections, as well as ensure the release of
the Chibok girls. Even Pres. Jonathan said during an
interview last Friday that the military would capture
Shekau soon.

Twice in the past, the military had claimed to have
captured the terrorist leader, only for him to reappear.
But with the recent victories and momentum by the
soldiers there are now fresh hopes that Shekau can be
captured this time.

The desire to capture the terrorist leader this time,
according to a source is because, “On at least two
occasions now, troops have killed characters calling
themselves Abubakar Shekau in videos but the insurgents
manage to find other individuals looking like him and
pretend that he was still alive. The order to catch Shekau
alive is therefore to ensure that it will no longer be
possible to resort to the same trick. The rumour about
Shekau’s invincibility is one of the factors that troops are
afraid to confront the terrorists.”