Few days ago, the military took
journalists round some liberated Boko Haram strongholds in Maiduguri and
environs. Our reporter was there and reports
The area has the complete picture of a
deserted war front – dead bodies, human skulls, ribs, bones, mass
graves, destroyed homes and empty streets. Indeed, the gory scenes at
Bulabulin Ngarnam, a suburb of Maiduguri, where Boko Haram insurgents
held sway for the past four years, are better imagined than seen.
Our correspondent reports that so bad are the sights in Bulabulin that when journalists were taken to the area, it was very difficult to count the number of decomposing bodies of human beings, including men, women, children and the old.
Also discovered were over 200 shallow graves, many of which had been exhumed by dogs or washed away by rain waters. This is beside dozens of corpses deposited in hospitals days before, during and after the siege.
Not long ago, the area was effectively under the control of insurgents with their flags, amir (governor) and cabinet members while followers go about their normal lives of trading, worshiping, teaching and learning.
At the peak of their reign, insurgents reportedly moved about freely, mostly on motorbikes, brandishing their guns and other dangerous weapons. They succeeded in forcing out hundreds of lower class citizens who have settled in the area for years, leaving behind only those inhabitants who embraced their way of life and joined the followers of Mohammed Yusuf, the now slain leader of the Jama’atu Ahlis Sunnah Lidda’awati Wal Jihad, also known as Boko Haram.
Ngarnam, Weekly Trust reports, became famous when Mohammed Yusuf’s home, school and mosque popularly known as Markas were all destroyed by military operatives who were deployed to contain the insurgency in 2009.
Soon after the crackdown on members of the sect, those who survived regrouped in Bulabulin Ngarnam, among many other locations within and outside Maiduguri. While remaining underground, the sect members strengthened themselves by amassing arms and ammunitions as well as recruiting members in preparation for another insurgency that continued till date.
Few months ago, some known Boko Haram territories such as Budun, Kofa Biyu, Kawar Maila, among others, were reclaimed by Nigerian troops deployed to the area. However, recapturing Bulabulin was seen as a “mission impossible,” especially by locals who live few miles away from the enclave.
But the story changed not long ago, with operatives of the Joint Task Force (JTF) taking over the area from the insurgents, just like they did at the border towns of Kirenowa, Baga, Hausari in northern Borno as well as Sambisa forest in central Borno and Gwoza hills in southern Borno.
Weekly Trust heard about the story of a missing generation as hundreds of youths between the ages of 15 and 35 have died.
“We have taken over the place and have secured it 100 per cent,” said Lt. Col. Sagir Musa, the spokesman of the JTF.
Asked if the original inhabitants can go back to their houses, Sagir said, “Yes, of course. They are free to go back. We have done our part, which is reclaiming the place and securing it. The residents should go back anytime they feel like,” he said.
Before now, Bulabulin-Ngarnam was a nightmare for security forces, a point of no return for any target and a foregone settlement for the original inhabitants.
“It will be an understatement to say that the worse crime against humanity have been committed in (Bulabulin),” a Maiduguri based legal practitioner remarked.
“It is only time that can tell what happened there, but the fact is that we would live to remember that a calamity of large proportion fell on us in Borno State and northern Nigeria. However, the summary of whatever had happened can be found in Bulabulin Ngarnam,” he said.
Governor Kashim Shettima, who was on an assessment visit to the battle front on Thursday, was visibly shocked with what he saw. Lt Col. S. Ahmed, who led the expedition to Bulabulin Ngarnam took Shettima round the dislodged enclave.
The recaptured territory showed evidence of fight that lasted from July 3 - 8, 2013 which culminated in recovering the area.
During their visit, journalists were shown what the military commander who led the offensive called “Slaughter House,” an uncompleted mosque where the insurgents allegedly used to slit the throats of their victims.
The place was a terrifying scene with blood everywhere.
“The terrorists normally kidnap innocent civilians, comprising women and children mainly for ransom. Unfortunately, whenever the relations of the captive did not show up, the terrorists simply slaughter them here,” he said.
Another place visited was an open field littered with the decomposing corpses of those allegedly killed by the terrorists.
Next point of call was mass graves of suspected members of the Boko Haram insurgents, allegedly dug by their fellows.
Officers that led the operation explained that the graves were dug by surviving insurgents who took away the corpses of their colleagues during fights with security forces in various locations in Maiduguri and environs.
However, there are insinuations that some of the mass graves were dug by men from the Borno State Environmental Protection Agency (BOSEPA) and buried the remains of insurgents killed by security forces.
It is not clear how many people were buried in the graves. Col Musa did not also mention the figure.
“During the encounter, some terrorists were killed in the fire fight including the main Amir of Bulabulin Ngarnam, who was on the wanted list of the JTF with N10million bounty.
“He was responsible for the killing of a teacher and three students of Sanda Kyarami secondary school Ruwan Zafi in Maiduguri metropolis. Many abducted women, girls and children were rescued and handed over to their families by the task force. Many women, girls and children, were allegedly kept for various reasons, including forced marriages and labour.
“During the search of the areas, many arms and ammunition of various calibers buried inside houses and cemeteries were recovered,” Sagir said, shortly after journalists were taken round the recaptured territory.
Sagir said in the course of the operation, decomposing corpses of some people killed after they were abducted by the insurgents had been found in soak-away and sewages.
“Our troops also discovered vast network mouse-holes linking compounds and underground tunnels as well as bunkers, which were tactically built to look like soak-away. We are still searching the area for more weapons, ammunition and mass graves,” he said.
The military also took pressmen round heaps of decomposed corpses of civilians, also allegedly killed and dumped by the insurgents. Journalists were shown the bunkers and tunnel which served as the hide-outs as well as escape routes for the militants. Some of them are so big and tricky, enough to contain over 50 people at a time.
Another striking discovery was the fact that the insurgents have perfected pathways, allowing them to move from one house to another without a trace. In some places, large craters had been created which gave access from one room to many others.
A notable person in Maiduguri who was captured by the insurgents, but escaped said he was taken to more than 30 houses in less than 24 hours.
“I hardly stayed in a house for more than 30 minutes…the experience was horrible,” he said.
“This is just like what I read in James Hardly Chase,” a journalist, who participated in the voyage remarked.
Farmlands belonging to fleeing residents have been turned into a vast graveyard and armoury.
In one of the ‘graves’, a big plastic tank buried underground was seen. Military sources said it was used for keeping bombs and guns by the insurgents but was uncovered by authorities, using modern equipment and snipping dogs.
JTF spokesman said similar operations had been carried out in Alanjeri and Falujja, all on the outskirts of Maiduguri.
He said the operation was a “huge success”, adding that “it was carefully planned and carried out based on intelligence report.
At the end of his visit, Governor Shettima remarked that he was confident Allah has answered the prayers of the helpless people of Borno.
“We are now witnessing a new lease of life. Our youths have come out en masse and the security forces are doing their best. We strongly believe that the worse days are over,” he said.
Weekly Trust reports that though Bulabulin-Ngarnam, Bayan Quarters and Falluja have been “secured”, a lot need to be done to make the places habitable. For now, the areas lack water, drainage and electricity.
Our correspondent reports that so bad are the sights in Bulabulin that when journalists were taken to the area, it was very difficult to count the number of decomposing bodies of human beings, including men, women, children and the old.
Also discovered were over 200 shallow graves, many of which had been exhumed by dogs or washed away by rain waters. This is beside dozens of corpses deposited in hospitals days before, during and after the siege.
Not long ago, the area was effectively under the control of insurgents with their flags, amir (governor) and cabinet members while followers go about their normal lives of trading, worshiping, teaching and learning.
At the peak of their reign, insurgents reportedly moved about freely, mostly on motorbikes, brandishing their guns and other dangerous weapons. They succeeded in forcing out hundreds of lower class citizens who have settled in the area for years, leaving behind only those inhabitants who embraced their way of life and joined the followers of Mohammed Yusuf, the now slain leader of the Jama’atu Ahlis Sunnah Lidda’awati Wal Jihad, also known as Boko Haram.
Ngarnam, Weekly Trust reports, became famous when Mohammed Yusuf’s home, school and mosque popularly known as Markas were all destroyed by military operatives who were deployed to contain the insurgency in 2009.
Soon after the crackdown on members of the sect, those who survived regrouped in Bulabulin Ngarnam, among many other locations within and outside Maiduguri. While remaining underground, the sect members strengthened themselves by amassing arms and ammunitions as well as recruiting members in preparation for another insurgency that continued till date.
Few months ago, some known Boko Haram territories such as Budun, Kofa Biyu, Kawar Maila, among others, were reclaimed by Nigerian troops deployed to the area. However, recapturing Bulabulin was seen as a “mission impossible,” especially by locals who live few miles away from the enclave.
But the story changed not long ago, with operatives of the Joint Task Force (JTF) taking over the area from the insurgents, just like they did at the border towns of Kirenowa, Baga, Hausari in northern Borno as well as Sambisa forest in central Borno and Gwoza hills in southern Borno.
Weekly Trust heard about the story of a missing generation as hundreds of youths between the ages of 15 and 35 have died.
“We have taken over the place and have secured it 100 per cent,” said Lt. Col. Sagir Musa, the spokesman of the JTF.
Asked if the original inhabitants can go back to their houses, Sagir said, “Yes, of course. They are free to go back. We have done our part, which is reclaiming the place and securing it. The residents should go back anytime they feel like,” he said.
Before now, Bulabulin-Ngarnam was a nightmare for security forces, a point of no return for any target and a foregone settlement for the original inhabitants.
“It will be an understatement to say that the worse crime against humanity have been committed in (Bulabulin),” a Maiduguri based legal practitioner remarked.
“It is only time that can tell what happened there, but the fact is that we would live to remember that a calamity of large proportion fell on us in Borno State and northern Nigeria. However, the summary of whatever had happened can be found in Bulabulin Ngarnam,” he said.
Governor Kashim Shettima, who was on an assessment visit to the battle front on Thursday, was visibly shocked with what he saw. Lt Col. S. Ahmed, who led the expedition to Bulabulin Ngarnam took Shettima round the dislodged enclave.
The recaptured territory showed evidence of fight that lasted from July 3 - 8, 2013 which culminated in recovering the area.
During their visit, journalists were shown what the military commander who led the offensive called “Slaughter House,” an uncompleted mosque where the insurgents allegedly used to slit the throats of their victims.
The place was a terrifying scene with blood everywhere.
“The terrorists normally kidnap innocent civilians, comprising women and children mainly for ransom. Unfortunately, whenever the relations of the captive did not show up, the terrorists simply slaughter them here,” he said.
Another place visited was an open field littered with the decomposing corpses of those allegedly killed by the terrorists.
Next point of call was mass graves of suspected members of the Boko Haram insurgents, allegedly dug by their fellows.
Officers that led the operation explained that the graves were dug by surviving insurgents who took away the corpses of their colleagues during fights with security forces in various locations in Maiduguri and environs.
However, there are insinuations that some of the mass graves were dug by men from the Borno State Environmental Protection Agency (BOSEPA) and buried the remains of insurgents killed by security forces.
It is not clear how many people were buried in the graves. Col Musa did not also mention the figure.
“During the encounter, some terrorists were killed in the fire fight including the main Amir of Bulabulin Ngarnam, who was on the wanted list of the JTF with N10million bounty.
“He was responsible for the killing of a teacher and three students of Sanda Kyarami secondary school Ruwan Zafi in Maiduguri metropolis. Many abducted women, girls and children were rescued and handed over to their families by the task force. Many women, girls and children, were allegedly kept for various reasons, including forced marriages and labour.
“During the search of the areas, many arms and ammunition of various calibers buried inside houses and cemeteries were recovered,” Sagir said, shortly after journalists were taken round the recaptured territory.
Sagir said in the course of the operation, decomposing corpses of some people killed after they were abducted by the insurgents had been found in soak-away and sewages.
“Our troops also discovered vast network mouse-holes linking compounds and underground tunnels as well as bunkers, which were tactically built to look like soak-away. We are still searching the area for more weapons, ammunition and mass graves,” he said.
The military also took pressmen round heaps of decomposed corpses of civilians, also allegedly killed and dumped by the insurgents. Journalists were shown the bunkers and tunnel which served as the hide-outs as well as escape routes for the militants. Some of them are so big and tricky, enough to contain over 50 people at a time.
Another striking discovery was the fact that the insurgents have perfected pathways, allowing them to move from one house to another without a trace. In some places, large craters had been created which gave access from one room to many others.
A notable person in Maiduguri who was captured by the insurgents, but escaped said he was taken to more than 30 houses in less than 24 hours.
“I hardly stayed in a house for more than 30 minutes…the experience was horrible,” he said.
“This is just like what I read in James Hardly Chase,” a journalist, who participated in the voyage remarked.
Farmlands belonging to fleeing residents have been turned into a vast graveyard and armoury.
In one of the ‘graves’, a big plastic tank buried underground was seen. Military sources said it was used for keeping bombs and guns by the insurgents but was uncovered by authorities, using modern equipment and snipping dogs.
JTF spokesman said similar operations had been carried out in Alanjeri and Falujja, all on the outskirts of Maiduguri.
He said the operation was a “huge success”, adding that “it was carefully planned and carried out based on intelligence report.
At the end of his visit, Governor Shettima remarked that he was confident Allah has answered the prayers of the helpless people of Borno.
“We are now witnessing a new lease of life. Our youths have come out en masse and the security forces are doing their best. We strongly believe that the worse days are over,” he said.
Weekly Trust reports that though Bulabulin-Ngarnam, Bayan Quarters and Falluja have been “secured”, a lot need to be done to make the places habitable. For now, the areas lack water, drainage and electricity.
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