Nigeria: Report Gives Details, Says Terrorist Groups Gaining Foothold in Nigeria

The governor also called for greater vigilance on the part of both security agencies and the citizens of the country towards the early detection and prevention of terror plots, adding that more education and sensitisation on the nature and operational methods of the terrorists should be made available to the public.

He expressed sympathy with the victims of the attacks and their survivors, saying that the nation owed them a duty to ensure that the perpetrators of the act were brought to book.

Former Guber Candidate Calls For P robe

Former Enugu State governorship candidate of the Congress For Progressive Change (CPC), Chief Emma Ugwu, has condemned, in its entirety, the bombing of the Police Headquarters, Abuja, urging the Federal Government to probe the incident with a view to bringing the perpetrators to book.

Speaking with Saturday Tribune in Enugu, on Friday, Chief Ugwu warned that unless drastic measures were put in place, the nation's democracy would be in jeopardy.

Chief Ugwu noted that the bomb scare and killings in some parts of the country portended danger for the country's march towards a stable democratic rule, adding that no responsive and responsible government would fold its hands and watch the lives of its citizens threatened as it is being witnessed in the country in recent times.

"President Goodluck Jonathan's government should look inwards within its ranks for what occurred on Thursday to know whether Boko Haram's members have infiltrated the security network of the country. He should also find out the remote causes of the social insecurity in the country as we are yet to come out from the post election violence."

The CPC chieftain said that the Federal Government should not allow some elements to create unnecessary tension and panic in the country, adding that no person or group of persons was bigger than the country as corporate interest of the nation remained paramount.

Chief Ugwu stated that Nigerians should emulate countries like America and Britain, where politics is based on developmental issues, pointing out that national interest should take precedence over selfish and sectional interests at all times.

OPC Threatens To Retaliate If...

The Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) has threatened to meet force with force in the event of the reported plan by Boko Haram, to launch an attack in the south-west.

However, the National Coordinator of OPC, Chief Gani Adams, who condemned the sect's act in Abuja, said that any attempt at a repeat of such act in the south-west of the Country would boomerang.

According to him, "while it is possible for them to carry out their attacks in the northern part of the country without any resistance, that of the south west would be met with stiffer opposition," he said.

Condemning the act, Adams enjoined members of the Islamic sect to embrace peace, rather than resorting to violence, if truly what it is advocating is the implementation of Sharia.

Bombings Are Wrong Signals --Idris

The Kogi State governor, Alhaji Ibrahim Idris, has said that the bomb blast at the Police Force Headquarters, Abuja, on Thursday, was an indication that the nation was not safe.

Speaking with newsmen on Friday, Governor Idris said that the incident was unfortunate, noting that the country was not known for such a thing.

The governor, who spoke through his Director General, Press Affairs, Mr. Richard Elesho, said not too long ago, a military barrack was bombed in Abuja as well as the Independent Electoral Commission's (INEC) office at Suleja in Niger State.

According to him, those behind the bombing are sending wrong signals that the country was not safe.

He noted that all the security operatives in the country should work together, so that the situation could be brought to rest by arresting those behind the incident.

Governor Idris said Nigerian should be security- conscious, so that such incident would not take place again.

Seek Redress Through Dialogue -- NSCIA

The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA), on Friday, condemned the bomb attack within the premises of Police Headquarters in Abuja, which led to the destruction of lives and property.

The position of the council was made known by its Secretary General, Dr. Abdul-Lateef Adegbite, during a press briefing at the National Mosque, Abuja.

According to him, "the NSCIA condemns all forms of violence, including the spate of bombings in different p arts of the country and notes with deep sadness, the latest bombing at the Police Headquarters, which caused destruction of lives and property. The council calls on all Nigerians to seek redress for all grievances through dialogue and peaceful means, not through violence."

Dr. Adegbite further stated that the solutions being sought for the multifaceted problems of the Almajirai would be practical and permanent, devoid of political gains and expediency, adding that governments of the affected states, as well as scholars and community leaders must be involved.

[Description of Source: Ibadan Nigerian Tribune Online in English -- Website of the privately owned daily; URL: http://www.tribune.com.ng]

Nigeria: Suspected Islamic Sect Gunmen Reportedly Kill 3 People in Borno State

AFP20110620565002 Abuja Daily Trust Online in English 2300 GMT 19 Jun 11

[Report by Hamza Idris: "Gunmen Launch 2 Attacks, Kill 3 in Borno"]

Two gunmen suspected to be members of the Yusufiyya movement, popularly called Boko Haram, yesterday launched attack at a relaxation point popularly called "Majalissa" at Gomari area of Maiduguri metropolis and killed two people.

Witnesses said another person at the tent sustained gunshots and was rushed to hospital for treatment. "The gunmen came on an unmarked motorcycle and opened fire on the people who were playing cards (Poker) or "Karta" in Hausa inside the local meeting point before they fled away," the source said.

The source said he suspected that the prime target of the attack might be a police officer, who usually visits his friends at the tent. "But I doubt much if he was among those that were killed," he said.

He said shortly thereafter members of the joint task force went to the scene and carried all the victims to the hospital. "Before the security men came, all of us around the area had dispersed and therefore no one could offer any help to the victims who were left in the pool of their blood," he said.

Our correspondent learnt that two hours later, another set of gunmen waylaid and killed another man around Gidan Dambe, along Bama road in the heart of the state capital. Witnesses said the victim must be paramilitary personnel even though his establishment could not be ascertained as at press time. "The gunmen trailed the man to this destination before they killed him. The incident happened around 8pm. They didn't touch any other person even though the whole area was thrown into pandemonium as passersby scampered for safety," one of the witnesses said.

Efforts to speak to police spokesman Lawan Abdullahi were not successful as he did not pick his phone when this reporter called.

[Description of Source: Abuja Daily Trust Online in English -- Website of the independent pro-North daily; URL: http://dailytrust.dailytrust.com/index.php]

Nigeria: Police Suspect Insider Connives With Bombers

AFP20110621606006 Lagos Daily Champion in English 20 Jun 11 p 2

[Report by Malachy Uzendu: "Force Headquarters Bombing - Police Suspect Insider"]

Evidence so far gleaned from the specimen gathered by ballisticians and forensic experts from the debris picked up at the Force Headquarters after last Thursday's bomb blast points at insider connivance in the entire mayhem. Sources at the Force Headquarters said the preliminary reports by the experts assembled by the Inspector-General of Police [IGP], Alhaji Hafiz Ringim to unravel how the person carrying the bomb entered into the force headquarters and successfully detonated the bomb showed that there was insider connivance. According to sources, the mega-ton bomb, which could be found only in military and related installations, have sent the National Security Adviser [NSA] to re-strengthen his intelligence gathering parameters with a view to getting to the pin-point of where the bomb came from.

It was gathered that not only was the specie which wrecked the havoc similar to what is being kept in military armories, the level of accuracy in detonating the bomb has left the NSA with no option than to raise queries on the dependability of certain elements posted to certain strategic exclusive places and vulnerable points.

Last week's bomb killed no fewer than 10 persons given unofficial figures, including visitors, drivers, members of the Police Mobile Force (PMF) on stand-by at the Force Headquarters as well as several people and contractors who mill around the vast parking lot. Apart from the two burnt corpses which were taken to the Asokoro General Hospital mortuary, the other victims were mangled and flung far and between the premises in bits and pieces.

Some of such specie were even discovered at the Police Officers Wives Association [POWA] schools, just opposite the FHQ as well as up to the Court of Appeal premises and construction sites and the nearby bush and other premises. With last week's media speculation of the possibility of the bomb courier barging into the IGP's convoy, which seemed almost impossible, within security circles, given the training given to drivers of VIPs on defensive driving and the ease with which those who planted such stories created the "distraction" among the uninformed, such information however have sent the security chiefs back to the drawing board.

It was learnt that since it was not possible for any untrained driver to have barged into the IGPs convoy and yet have a leeway as being speculated, but could have taken only someone who connived with insiders to have successfully brought done so possibly and in addition brought in such high level tonnage of bomb into the premises, the need for further probe became inevitable.

Only recently while commissioning the Armored Personnel Carriers [APCs] procured by the Borno State government to ward off the dreaded Boko Haram which had wrecked havoc in the state and other parts of the North East, the IGP has boasted that the days of the sect group were numbered.

But the reasoning within security circles is that given that only insiders in the system, who wanted to prove a point, could have allowed the bomb courier to gain entrance into the force headquarters moments before the IGP arrived, this clue is being further investigated. It was also gleaned , according to our security sources that the insiders, which included the top shots manning the entrance gate to the Force Headquarters as well as those in-charge of the CCTV section, it became imperative to put a searchlight on the areas in order to ascertain which of them played which role and how possibly.

The source noted that with the level of sophisticated security gadgets installed at the FHQ gate, precise location of such dangerous objects could have been picked even before it approached the complex and pre-emptive measures immediately put in place. Similarly, the FHQ-CCTV was found to have failed to pick the identities of those who came into the FHQ in vehicles before the bomb went off, leading to the clue that it could have only been possible through insider connivance. Had these happened, the sources told our reporter that the Police Anti-Bomb section would have acted immediately and put off the bomb before it went off.

One of the sources told our reporter: "my friend, how do you think this place is so porous as you are ascribing to it now. It is not so. This place is so secure that the last thing we expected is this kind of embarrassment. It is unfortunate and has cast a slur on all of us, but we shall get to the end of this matter. We are working on the possibility of an insider playing the mole in the entire unfortunate episode. We are working on all our clues and in due course, you would be surprised at what we have been able to gather." When further probed, the sources told our reporter of how comparatively the FHQ and Presidential Villa could rank among the most secure places in the country, "but now, they have carried this game to our door- mouth and we have danced naked".

With available information, it is being further felt that some embassies in Abuja may have equally been involved but the motives of such embassies were still being analyzed. Similarly, the role of the terrorist gang which security had ascertained is code named Boko Haram and dubbed religious sect, is being more critically analyzed so as to ascertain if they have other motives except the ones they had made public among which is the "islamization" of the northern parts of the country.

The possibility of the IGP being the target is also being more closely analyzed to see the synergy between this factor and the factor of insider abuse as well as the relationship of this and the sudden disappearance of some earlier arrested suspects, placed under surveillance at the same FHQ in the past and immediate periods. Security at the FHQ and other vulnerable places have been at its peak, with most policemen being so unruly to specially journalists, whom they would rather engage in acts of brutalization than allow them even explain their identities and if they have any official business in the place.

[Description of Source: Lagos Daily Champion in English -- Privately owned pro-Igbo daily]

Nigeria: Suspected Islamic Sect Gunmen Kill 2 People, Injure 4 in Borno State

AFP20110621598001 Ibadan Nigerian Tribune Online in English 21 Jun 11

[Report by James Bwala: "Again, Boko Haram Kills 2, Injure 4 in Borno"]

Some suspected members of Boko Haram, on Sunday, shot and killed two people and injured four others in two separate attacks at Gomari Bus stop and Gidan Dambe Bama Road in Maiduguri Metropolitan Council of Borno State.

The gunmen, who were said to have arrived Gomari Bus stop riding on motorcycles with their Kalashnikov rifle hidden under their flowing gowns, fired several gunshots at the people playing card under a tree.

Confirming the killings, the Borno State Police Commissioner, Mohammed Jinjiri Abubakar, told Nigerian Tribune on the phone that: "our Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in Gomari sent a distress call about the attack at the Bus Stop at 5.00p.m., that seven suspected Boko Haram members opened fire on the people playing card under a tree, killing one on the spot and injuring four others."

The police boss said though no arrest had been made, he added that information provided by residents of the area, would assist the police in fishing out the assailants.

An eyewitness at Gomari said: "the gunmen fired several shots at 14 people playing card under a tree and killed Waturfa Ngadda, a 45-year-old nurse with Molai General Hospital, on the spot, while others fled into houses and shops in the area.

He said the target of the gunmen was a police sergeant living in the area, but when they could not identify him, they opened fire on the people playing card, adding that, "when members of the Joint Military/Police Taskforce (JMPT) came to the scene`, they conveyed the four people that sustained injury to the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH) for treatment".

The body of the slain nurse has been deposited at UMTH.

A security personnel driving his private car at the Gidan Dambe Bama Road, was also shot dead by suspected Boko Haram members.

[Description of Source: Ibadan Nigerian Tribune Online in English -- Website of the privately owned daily; URL: http://www.tribune.com.ng]

Nigeria: Suspected Islamic Sect Gunmen Kill 5 Policemen in Katsina State

AFP20110621598002 Lagos This Day Online in English 21 Jun 11

[Report by Ibrahim Shuaibu: "Boko Haram: 5 Policemen, 1 Civilian Killed in Katsina"]

Suspected members of Boko Haram on Monday attacked a bank and a police station in Kankara local government area of Katsina state, killing five policemen and a civilian.

The incident occurred when the suspected members of Boko Haram attacked the local branch of a new generation bank at about the close of work and carted away an undisclosed amount of money.

The suspects numbering 12 were said to have stormed the bank premises with explosives, blowing the entrance up to gain access before carting away the money and killing two policemen who were on duty.

Reports said after carting away the money from the bank, the suspected members went into Kankara town and shared the money among the people of the town.

From the bank, they were said to have proceeded to Kankara Divisional police station, forced their way into it and released those detained at the station cell.

After releasing the inmates, they engaged the police in a gun duel, killing three policemen in the gun battle and setting the police station on fire.

THISDAY gathered that the Area Commander of the police in charge of Funtua Zone, Ahmed Azare, visited the scene of the incident, but declined to make any comment.

The suspected bandits were said to have escaped after going round the town chanting 'Allahu Akbar', meaning Allah is great.

All efforts to contact the state police Commissioner Alhaji Sabo Ringim proved abortive, while the command spokesman Abubakar Muhammad had his mobile phone switched off.

[Description of Source: Lagos This Day Online in English -- Website of the independent daily; URL: http://www.thisdaylive.com/]

Nigeria: Presidential Aide Rejects Amnesty Program for Islamic Sect Members

AFP20110621597012 Dakar PANA Online in English 20 Jun 11

[Unattributed report: "Nigeria: Niger Delta Amnesty Office Rejects Training of Boko Haram Sect Members"]

Nigeria's Presidential Amnesty Office for the Niger Delta, which is coordinating the implementation of the amnesty programme for the former regional militants, has rejected calls for the integration of the Boko Haram sect into the amnesty programme of the federal government.

Special Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan on Amnesty and the Niger Delta, Kingsley Kuku, declared in Abuja Monday that the Amnesty Office would not accept members of the northern Islamic sect.

Kuku said at the end of an orientation programme for 36 Niger Delta youths, being sent to Israel for training in Agriculture, that "the amnesty programme is a special programme for youths of Niger Delta, which had gone through the first and second phases. But there will not be a third phase."

According to him, the federal government's amnesty programme has ended and there shall be no more inclusion.

"Now, it is only governments, individuals and philanthropists to initiate programmes that will develop youths in their areas", Kuku said, adding that as far as his office was concerned, the only person with such powers to grant amnesty to anyone was the President.

According to him, "President Jonathan is the only one with that power. However, let me make this clear that the current amnesty programme is actually a solution by this country under our beloved late President Musa Yar'Adua and his then Vice President who is now President, working together to proclaim amnesty.

"It's a special programme that can never be politicised. It can never be mixed up with any other issue at all. It's a special programme meant to address a special problem. That has been done. However, people have individual rights to agitate and demand for whatever they believe in."

He admonished the 34 youths to "be good representatives of Nigeria, to be well behaved and be serious about their studies."

Accorfing to him, the training in agriculture is important in order to veer away from oil and gas, as there are limited opportunities in that sector alone.

The 34 youths are to be trained for three months in Israel and they will then come back to Nigeria for another three months training.

During the training, they will each be paid US$ 500 per month.

At the end of the training, those who will like to establish their own farms will get help from the Amnesty Office while job placements will be given to others.

[Description of Source: Dakar PANA Online in English -- Website of the independent news agency with material from correspondents and news agencies throughout Africa; URL: http://www.panapress.com/english/index.htm]

Somalis said among terror suspects arrested in Nigeria

AFP20110621950050 Dayniile Online in Somali 21 Jun 11

Text of report by Sweden-based Somali Dayniile website on 21 June

Nigerian security forces are said to have arrested up to 60 people among them Somalis who are reported to have been fighting alongside a rebel group in that country named Boko Haram.

Nigeria's anti terrorism forces which conducted the operation said some of the arrested Somalis had been connected to a recent explosion attack in the town of Abuja which resulted in the loss of life and injury. Nigerian forces also said explosives and arms were recovered from some of the houses where these Somali nationals resided and that investigations to ascertain how they came into the country are as of now ongoing.

The Al-Shabab Movement has been implicated in a suicide attack carried out in Abuja by the Nigeria's Boko Haram group. A spokesman for the police in that country has said those that carried out the attack had been trained in Somalia and had close links with the Al-Shabab.

[Description of Source: Dayniile Online in Somali -- Swedish based, news oriented website that appears sympathetic to Somali Islamist insurgents; URL: http://www.dayniile.com]

Nigeria: Militant Islamic Sect Shuns Presidential Dialogue

AFP20110621696001 Kaduna KSTV Kaduna in Hausa 1800 GMT 17 Jun 11

The militant Islamic sect, Boko Haram, says it will no longer participate in the proposed dialogue with President Goodluck Jonathan following statements credited to the Inspector General of Police Hafiz Ringim and Governor Shettima of Borno State- on governments renewed effort to eliminate them- during the donation of some 10 armored personnel carriers, by the federal government, to combat the sect.

In a press release, the organization advised civilians to restrict their movement within Maiduguri and environs, as well as other Northern States and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, as they have vowed to explore new devastating strategies.

The statement further restates that the sect is committed to wage Jihad (holy war) on the enemies of God.

It also states that they have reinforcement of "jihadists", as their members have arrived Nigeria from Somalia, where they received training on warfare.

[Description of Source: Kaduna State Television in Hausa--Kaduna State-owned government-controlled television]

Nigeria: Police Chief Says Boko Haram Days Numbered, Boko Haram Reacts

AFP20110622606001 Abuja African Independent Television in English 1900 GMT 20 Jun 11

The Boko Haram sect has reacted to the statement credited to the Inspector General of Police, [IGP] Hafiz Ringim, that the days of the sect members were numbered with the donation of 10 armored personnel carriers and 10 patrol vehicles to the police by Governor Kashim Shettima of Borno State on 13 June. Boko Haram sect advised civilians to restrict their movements in Maiduguri and environs as well as other northern states and the FCT, as members of the sect have vowed to explore new strategies which will be very devastating. In a statement issued in Hausa, the Islamist militants said dialogue with Jonathan had collapsed because of the statements credited to both the Inspector General of Police and Governor Shettima during the donation of the 10 Personnel Armored Carriers, APCs by the Borno State government to fight them.

Ringim who was in Maiduguri to assess the security situation in Borno State, had while speaking to newsmen at the Maiduguri International Airport, said the police and other security agencies have concluded intelligence options on how to crush the Boko Haram insurgency, not only in Borno, but the entire northern states including Kaduna, Yobe, Bauchi, Adamawa, Kano, Gombe, and Borno.