Nigeria’s military on Wednesday announced the deployment of “massive” forces to its northeastern border regions after the president declared a state of emergency in the areas where Islamist insurgents have seized territory.
President Goodluck Jonathan issued the emergency decree in a broadcast late Tuesday, acknowledging for the first time that Boko Haram Islamists had “taken over” parts of Borno state, the insurgents’ stronghold.
“Nigerian Armed Forces…have commenced operations to rid the nation’s border territories of terrorist bases,” the military statement said.
“The operations which will involve massive deployment of men and resources is aimed at asserting the nation’s territorial integrity,” it added.
The emergency measures applied to Borno and two neighbouring states, Yobe and Adamawa.
Boko Haram, which says it is fighting to create an Islamic state in Nigeria’s mostly Muslim north, had used Borno’s capital of Maiduguri as a home base, but its fighters have relocated to remote border regions following a crackdown in the city.
The borders with Chad and Niger are porous and analysts say that criminal groups, including weapons dealers, have for years migrated freely between countries.
Nigeria has warned that Boko Haram has increasingly sought ties with like-minded foreign groups, including Al-Qaeda’s north African wing and has gained access in recent months to more powerful weapons, some of which have been brought in through unchecked borders.
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