Headlines
We’re Winning the War Against Boko Haram, Insecurity, FG Declares
Despite an upsurge in Boko Haram activities in the North-east, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, insists that President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration is winning the war against the insurgents.
Mr Mohammed said the government is winning the war against insecurity including the Boko-Haram insurgency, banditry, kidnapping and other security threats.
The minister, at an end of the year press conference held in Lagos on Monday, said the Boko-Haram insurgents have been ‘confined’ by the Nigerian troops while “banditry and kidnapping have been reduced to the barest minimum.”
“Our gallant men and women in uniform stepped up the fight against terrorism in 2019, despite the fact that they are not just fighting the rump of Boko Haram but also the Islamic State’s West African Province (ISWAP).
“Yes, they occasionally attack soft targets from the fringe islands in Chad, where they have been confined by our troops, but they don’t hold any territory like they did before the advent of this administration, when they hoisted their flag in their Bama Caliphate, collected taxes, as well as removed and installed Emirs. They no longer have such capabilities.
“The successful attacks they carried out in Abuja and other cities are now a thing of the past. The terrorists’ recent attempt to attack soft targets in Damaturu, the Yobe State Capital, and Biu in Borno State were repelled by the military, with the terrorists suffering heavy casualties,” Mr Mohammed told journalists.
Mr Mohammed’s claim is partly true, especially the fact that the insurgents have not been able to carry out any attack in cities outside the North-east for about three years.
Hundreds of the insurgents, including members of ISWAP, a breakaway faction of Boko Haram, have also been killed by security forces in 2019. One of such was the reported killing of 48 Boko Haram fighters during a failed attack on Biu, Borno State, last week.
However, the insurgents have not only attacked soft targets in 2019. PREMIUM TIMES reported how military bases and formations were attacked and sacked by the insurgents in separate incidents leading to the deaths of dozens of soldiers.
Many towns and communities have also been recently sacked by the insurgents in Borno State, with a federal lawmaker complaining that the situation was dire.
fications. The terrorists are as irrational as they are inhuman. They do not subscribe to any religion, despite their pretensions. That explains why they reportedly murdered 11 innocent men in Nigeria recently, in a dastardly and cold-blooded manner, just to avenge the killing of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi by US forces. The world must unite to fight this scourge of our time.
“Also, thanks to a multi-dimensional approach, the incessant farmers-herders clashes across the country, as well as banditry and kidnapping, have been reduced to the barest minimum,” he said.
Premium Times
President Donald Trump vowed on Sunday that the United States would take Greenland “one way or the other,” warning that Russia and China would “take over” if Washington fails to act.
Trump says controlling the mineral-rich Danish territory is crucial for US national security given increased Russian and Chinese military activity in the Arctic.
“If we don’t take Greenland, Russia or China will, and I’m not letting that happen,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, despite neither country laying claim to the vast island.
Trump said he would be open to making a deal with the Danish self-governing territory “but one way or the other, we’re going to have Greenland.”
Denmark and other European allies have voiced shock at Trump’s threats over the island, which plays a strategic role between North America and the Arctic, and where the United States has had a military base since World War II.
A Danish colony until 1953, Greenland gained home rule 26 years later and is contemplating eventually loosening its ties with Denmark.
The vast majority of its population and political parties have said they do not want to be under US control and insist Greenlanders must decide their own future — a viewpoint continuously challenged by Trump.
“Greenland should make the deal, because Greenland does not want to see Russia or China take over,” Trump warned, as he mocked its defenses.
“You know what their defense is, two dog sleds,” he said, while Russia and China have “destroyers and submarines all over the place.”
Denmark’s prime minister warned last week that any US move to take Greenland by force would destroy 80 years of transatlantic security links.
Trump waved off the comment saying: “If it affects NATO, it affects NATO. But you know, (Greenland) need us much more than we need them.”
AFP
Iran has warned the United States against any military action, saying it would retaliate if the U.S. President Donald Trump follows through on threats to intervene as Tehran continues its crackdown on nationwide protests.
Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, issued the warning during a parliamentary session broadcast live on Iranian State television.
Qalibaf praised the country’s military response to the protests and cautioned that both the U.S. military and Israel are considered “legitimate targets” in the event of an attack on Iran.
Referring to Israel as “the occupied territory,” Qalibaf said Iran would not rule out launching a preemptive strike against either country if it perceives a threat.
“In the event of an attack on Iran, both the occupied territory and all American military centers, bases and ships in the region will be our legitimate targets,” Qalibaf said.
“We do not consider ourselves limited to reacting after the action and will act based on any objective signs of a threat,” he added.
The warning came amid scenes of heightened tension in the chamber, as hardline lawmakers rushed the dais and chanted, “Death to America!”
Iran has been rocked by widespread protests challenging the country’s theocratic system over the past few weeks, prompting a sustained security crackdown by authorities.
Activists estimated that at least 116 people have died in connection with the demonstrations, while about 2,600 others have been detained, according to the U.S.-based Human Right Activists News Agency. Exact figures remain unclear due to internet shutdowns and disrupted phone services across the country.
Trump has warned that the United States is prepared to act if Iranian authorities kill protesters.
“If Iran (shoots) and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue. We are locked and loaded and ready to go,” Trump said earlier this month.
“Iran is looking at FREEDOM, perhaps like never before. The USA stands ready tohelp!!!” he added on his Truth Social platform.
Meanwhile, The New York Times reported that Trump has been briefed on possible military strike options against Iran but has yet to make a final decision.
