IssaTchiroma, Communication Minister
Below is the Mincom’s introductory remarks
at a recent press conference in Y’de
Distinguished Journalists,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
I wish you all a warm welcome and thank you
for honoring my invitation to take part in this exchange on the security
situation in the Far-North region of our country.
As
a matter of fact, on Wednesday, June 29 2016 at around 9.30 p.m., in the
Djakana village in the Mayo-Sava Division, a young suicide bomber of about 25
years, activated his explosive device among a group of youths who were gathered
in a local video club.
Taken
by surprise by the sudden appearance of the suicide bomber inside the premises
of an entertainment spot, the youths present at the scene of the event were
given no time to anticipate the macabre plan of their attackers and foil it
before the explosive could be activated.
The toll of this attack stands at 11
civilians killed in addition to the suicide-bomber and three injured.
Two
of the injured were rushed to the Mora District Hospital and the other one
transported to the Maroua Regional Hospital.
On that same night of June 29, 2016, about
fifty Boko Haram terrorists attacked a command post of the Multinational Joint
task Force at Homeka, between the localities of Bonderi and Limani.
In
the course of this attack, a Cameroonian soldier was wounded on the shoulder
and rushed to the Maroua Regional Hospital. His health condition is not
critical. According to a military source, the assessment which is still
underway, reveals that the enemy side has incurred heavy losses.
It should be underscored that the Djakana
attack comes in at a time when the security apparatus set up at the level of
the Defence Forces and the vigilante committees is yielding concrete results as
evidenced by the reduced rate of attacks from the enemies.
Since
February 2016, the Cameroonian Special Defence Forces operating under the
banner of the Multinational Joint Task Force, working in perfect synergy, each
time that was necessary, with the Nigerian army, led a number of wide-range
sweep operations on either sides of the border with Nigeria.
As it is, eight instances of such
operations have been carried out. Their aim was basically to destroy the
network of terrorists based in Nigeria, and dismantle the fall back areas of
the attacks perpetrated by Boko Haram on our territory.
The
balance sheet of these operations, which the Government has always brought to
the knowledge of the general public, is highly positive with hundreds of
terrorists neutralized, weapons of various calibers seized, hundreds of
hostages released and, most importantly, tens of laboratories for the
manufacturing of explosive devices destroyed.
At
the strategic level, it should be noted that the operations dubbed
"Arrow" has inflicted a heavy blow to the terrorists, completely
annihilating their stronghold and pushing them to flee towards the Far-northern
part of Nigeria, as evidenced by the attacks reported at Bosso and its
surroundings in Niger.
In this context, the suicide attack at
Djakana and the attack against the Homeka command post refresh our memory that
even though the enemy may be dying, he can still have the capacity to harm.
In
this regard, our Defence Forces are well equipped to adapt and make a strategic
appraisal of the situation and to devise other measures that account for the
situation on the field of operations.
Allow
me to hereby announce that as we speak, a major maneuver is being carried out
by the Sector No. 1 of the Multinational Joint Task Force under the command of
Cameroonian-born Brigadier BoubaDobekreo in which 2,500 Cameroonian soldiers
are involved.
As
a matter of fact, for a dozen of days now, the Sector No. 1 of the Multinational
Joint Task Force has been carrying out at Makari and its surroundings, a sweep
operation whose ultimate goal is to reconquer the Nigerian territories hitherto
occupied by Boko Haram.
Several villages have been freed while the
Nigerian Forces are progressing from inside their territory towards the western
hemisphere heading to the joint borders of Niger, Chad and Cameroon.
Let
me also recall here that the Cameroonian Defence and Security Forces, under the
high leadership of the President of the Republic, Commander-in-Chief of the
Army, head on to safeguard the territorial integrity of our country in their
areas of responsibility.
The
strengthening of their operational capacity coupled with their sense of
patriotism, their commitment to the entire nation and their professionalism,
are on the verge of taking the lead over evil and obscurantism as embodied by
the Boko Haram terrorist group.
This
is once again the opportunity to hail the courage, determination and efficiency
of our Defence and Security Forces, backed by the brave vigilante committees
that have been working together with administrative authorities to track and
root out these notorious criminals wherever they may be hiding.
However, even if the enemy is now in agony,
this war is not yet over. And our people should be aware of this reality in
order to always remain more than ever vigilant by closely working with the
actors of the organized forces on the field, notably administrative
authorities, defense and security forces and vigilante committees.
For,
we should not forget that we are involved in an asymmetrical war where the
military advantage that we have imposed on the enemy never totally spares us
from cowardice acts of terrorists who are always advancing with hidden faces
and acting by surprise.
Thank
you for your kind attention
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