Fact check: Have 13,243 Boko Haram fighters surrendered?

Boko Haram members who surrendered

Boko Haram members who surrendered

How many Boko Haram fighters have really surrendered to Nigerian forces?
The headlines would want the world to believe they were 13,243. Really?

But this is a gross misrepresentation of facts, as presented by the Defence Headquarters.

In the latest bulletin presented by Brigadier Bernard Onyeuko, spokesman of the Defence Headquarters, only 3,243 fighters have surrendered.

The 13,243 being bandied include the family members of the insurgents.

Among them are 3,868 adult females, possibly their wives and 6,234 children.

Onyeuko made this clear in his latest report, declaring:

“More terrorists have continued to lay down their arms and surrender to own troops with their families as they could no longer withstand the offensive operations within the theatre”.

Thus it is wrong to continue to push out the misleading figure of 13,243 Boko Haram fighters giving up the fight.

Wives, children are lumped in the figure.

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Operation Hadin Kai is not over yet, as it seeks to further bring all the innsurgents, including ISWAP to their knees.

Onyeuko said in the last two weeks, Operation HADIN KAI sustained aggressive posture with vigour in the North East, which yielded significant results.

The series of land and air operations conducted in different locations across the North East theatre have reduced the operational capabilities of the insurgents.

Within the period, several terrorist elements were neutralized and several others arrested alongside their informants and logistics suppliers.

Some of these feats were recorded at; Gwoza – Yamtake – Bita road; Gwoza – Farm Centre – Yamtake road; Mandara Mountain area as well as Pulka and Hambagda towns; all in Borno State.

Cumulatively, within the period a total of 29 terrorists were neutralized and 13 terrorists including their informants/collaborators and logistics suppliers were arrested in the course of the operations.

Additionally, a total of 38 assorted weapons and 968 rounds of assorted ammunition as well as 48 rustled livestock among several other items were recovered.

Furthermore, the Air Component of Operation HADIN KAI carried out air interdiction missions to foil BHT/ISWAP criminal elements’ attack on ground troops’ location at Aulari village in Bama LGA of Borno State.

During the encounter, 3 of the terrorists’ gun trucks were destroyed together with their occupants and another was immobilized, while several other terrorists flee in disarray with varying degrees of wounds.

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