Government confirms killing of 162 Boko Haram fighters

By Mua Patrick Mughe in Yaounde

Government spokesman cum communication minister, Issa Tchiroma Bakary has confirmed the killing of some 162 Boko Haram fighters by the Cameroon army following two separate attacks recently in the Nigerian town of Ngoshe. Minister Issa Tchiroma was speaking at a press conference Monday February 15 in Yaounde.

On confirming the confrontation between the Cameroon army and militants of the Boko Haram sect which led to the death of two Cameroonian soldiers, Minister Issa Tchiroma recounted that the attacks took place in the locality of Ngoshe situated in Nigeria, about fifteen kilometers away from Ashigashia in the Far North region of Cameroon. The operations, which were carried out between February 11 in the morning and February 14, 2016 in the evening, Minister Tchiroma said  fell within the scope of a special operation dubbed "ARROW Five" under the banner of the Multinational Joint Task Force involving the five front line countries.

The government spokesman disclosed at the press conference that during the attacks, the Cameroon army dismantled a training facility, two combat vehicles, seized arms including two machine guns of 12.7 millimeters, three machine guns of 7.62 mm, rocket launchers, twelve AK47, two pistols, several grenades, a gas gun, knives, military uniforms, boxes of ammunition of various calibres, as well as generators, motor pumps and hundreds of motorcycles.

“The operation led by Cameroonian Special Forces also led to the release of a hundred of people made prisoners by Boko Haram.

Fifteen Cameroonian hostages, including seven members of the same family, namely the GARBA BELLO family, among whom the family head, the spouse and five children were freed by our forces during this operation, and brought back to Cameroon”

“Several Nigerian hostages were also freed thanks to this intervention of Cameroonian Special Forces” Tchiroma added.

He then regretted that “Unfortunately, this special, operation, despite its resounding success, claimed the life of two of our valiant soldiers, who fell at the battle field while fighting for the sake of the Nation. They are Captain PIPWOH YARI Emmanuel and Lieutenant Colonel KWENE EKWELE Beltus Honoré.The death of Captain PIPWOH YARI Emmanuel occurred on February 11, 2016 when around 9 a.m., a violent skirmish opposed our Special Forces to Boko Haram terrorists who were positioned on the road leading to Ngoshe, the target of the Cameroonian offensive”

Meantime, Lt. Col. Kwene Ekwele Beltus Honoré, shortly after ge had been assigned to convey the Nigerian hostages that had been released at Ngoshe in order to hand them over to the Nigerian authorities in the neighbouring town of Pulka. He is said to have sustained a serious injury alongside four other soldiers, when their vehicle stepped into a landmine that had been previously laid by Boko Haram.

“The injured soldiers were immediately evacuated by helicopter to Maroua and then transferred by a special aircraft of the air force to Douala.It was in the course of this immediate evacuation that Lieutenant Colonel KWENE unfortunately gave up the ghost” communication minister told newsmen.