Military arrests B’Haram fighters disguised as women

Troops involved in the ongoing
counter terrorism operation in the
North-East have arrested a number
of terrorists who disguised as
women in Baga, Borno State.
Baga, the headquarters of the Multi
National joint Task Force, was
captured by the insurgents in
January but was recaptured by the
Special Forces on Saturday.
The Director of Defence
Information, Maj. Gen. Chris
Olukolade, who stated this in a
statement on Monday, did not give
the exact number of the terrorists
arrested.
Olukolade had said in an earlier
statement on Sunday that troops
were screening a group of people
mostly women in Baga to ascertain
their true identities and to find out
whether they were supporters of
the deadly sect or not.
The Defence spokesman said that
the troops had arrested many
terrorists hiding in Baga apart from
those captured during the battle to
liberate the town.
Olukolade, who also said that
several arms and bombs hidden at
some locations within Baga had
been recovered, stated that those
in custody were being
interrogated.
He said, “The cordon and search in
Baga has revealed some terrorists
disguising as women.
“The searches are also yielding
more discoveries of arms especially
bombs hidden in various locations,
especially Baga town.
“Apart from those captured in the
course of fighting, many terrorists
hiding in the town are being
arrested and troops are still busy
interrogating the suspects.
“In furtherance of the mission to
clear terrorists from all their
enclaves by the military, the
Nigerian Air Force has stepped up
its air bombardments of identified
targets in Gwoza, Bama and
Sambisa forest, preparatory to
other phases of the mission.
“The air strikes have been highly
successful as they achieved the
aims, hitting vital targets with
required precision. Terrorists are
now in disarray as they scamper to
escape from the impact of air
bombardment of their locations in
the forest.”
He said that the military was now
preoccupied with the consolidation
of the liberated areas to pave the
way for the return of the residents
after flushing out the terrorists
from Baga.