DAKAR – The four African nations most threatened by Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram must put
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aside mutual distrust and agree on a command structure, a top UN official said.
UN Special Representative for West Africa, Mohamed Ibn Chambas, said on Friday that they should [pro_ad_display_adzone id=”10″]strategise for a fledgling regional force if they want to defeat the militants.
Chambas said the international community could only help Nigeria and neighbouring Niger, Chad and [pro_ad_display_adzone id=”10″]Cameroon, once they clearly laid out the assets they lacked to fight Boko Haram.
He said a month before presidential elections in Nigeria, Boko Haram has seized swathes of new territory.
It has killed hundreds of people in northern Nigeria, displaced several thousand more and seized the base of a regional military task-force meant to fight it.
“The fall of Baga this month, where as many as 2,000 people are reported to have been killed.[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”10″]
“This has led to increase calls for international support to halt an insurgency that has spread from northern Nigeria to threaten parts of Niger, Cameroon and Chad.
“It is clear now that the countries should not be left to tackle it individually, that has been the approach so far and it is not winning the fight,’’ Chambas told newsmen.
He said that it was up to the four states bordering Lake Chad to draw up better coordinated plans.
He called for a clearer command structure and rules of engagement, amid resistance from some countries to see their troops deploy outside their borders under foreign command. (Reuters/NAN)
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