Army renames Operation Lafiya Dole, vows to completely defeat Boko Haram

By BLESSING TUNOH  

The Nigerian Army has renamed Operation Lafiya Dole, military operations ongoing to flush out Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists in the northeastern part of the country.

This was announced on Friday via a statement signed by the Director of Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Mohammed Yerima.

Following the approval of the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Ibrahim Attahiru, the ongoing counterinsurgency Operation in the troubled region will be changed from Operation Lafiya Dole to Operation Hadin Kai.

“The Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru has approved the renaming of the ongoing Counterinsurgency Operation in the North East from Operation Lafiya Dole to Operation Hadin Kai,” the statement partly read.

“This is premised on the fact that the Nigerian Army has made a lot of progress over the years and needs to re-align for better efficiency.

“Also affected in the re-designation are the Army Super Camps which now reflect the nomenclature of the formations and units followed by the name of the locations they occupy while sub-units are redesigned as Forward Operating Bases followed by the name of their locations. All these changes are with immediate effect.”

The army spokesman explained that the change is in line with the COAS Vision of having “A Nigerian Army that is Repositioned to Professionally Defeat all Adversaries in a Joint Environment.”

According to him, the Army chief is committed to the complete defeat of insurgency, adding that it is a process that requires the participation of the entire nation using all elements of national power.

He added, “He further assured that the NA under his leadership will continue to pursue the path of jointness in prosecuting the counterinsurgency war.”

The country has been battling terrorism for more than a decade which has killed 36,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands in the northeast.

The Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) split from the jihadist group Boko Haram in 2016 and has since become a dominant threat in Nigeria, attacking troops and bases while killing and kidnapping passengers at bogus checkpoints.

Nigeria’s jihadist violence has spread to neighbouring Chad, Cameroon and Niger, prompting a regional military coalition to fight the insurgents. (Text from Channels TV excluding headline)