Alwaght-Nigerien and Chadian military forces have launched a joint
"ground and air" offensive against the Takfiri terrorist group Boko
Haram in northeastern Nigeria, a Niger government source says, citing in Press
TV.
"An offensive is underway against Boko Haram.... Very early this
morning, the troops from Niger and Chad began an offensive against Boko
Haram... in the area of Bosso and near to Diram," AFP quoted the unnamed
source as saying on Sunday.
The
military operation comes following African Union (AU)'s Friday decision to
establish a regional force of up to 10,000 men to battle the Takfiri militant group
that has pledged allegiance to the terrorist ISIS.
The
force is to be based in Chad's capital, N'Djamena, said the pan-African bloc's
Peace and Security Council. The idea for
creating the force was adopted at an AU summit in January.
The
mandate of the military force will be "to prevent the spread of Boko Haram
activities and other terrorist groups" and "eradicate their
presence," according to an agreement reached in an AU meeting earlier in
the week.
Boko
Haram, whose name means “Western education is forbidden,” controls parts of
northeastern Nigeria and says its goal is to overthrow the Nigerian government.
It
has claimed responsibility for a number of deadly shooting attacks and bombings
in various parts of Nigeria since the beginning of its activities in 2009,
which have left over 13,000 people dead and 1.5 million displaced.
Boko
Haram has also conducted military operations in Nigeria’s neighboring countries
Cameroon, Chad, and Niger.
