Nigeria partners Italy, Pakistan to Upgrade Warplanes

• Nigeria partners Italy, Pakistan to Upgrade Warplanes

The Nigerian Air Force said it had reached out to Italy and Pakistan to fortify its warplanes in the fight against Boko Haram.

The Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, who stated this while commenting on efforts to recover the remaining Chibok girls, said that the two countries would assist in building long-range surveillance cameras into NAF’s aircrafts.

Abubakar said that the efforts would enhance the search for the girls believed to be held by the terrorists at a yet-to-be-identified location in the region.

He said, “I think the Boko Haram insurgents look at the Chibok girls as special captives and they would do all within their power to conceal them.

“But we are working round the clock. For now, we have not seen any credible intelligence to show that what our ISR picked are the Chibok girls.

“These insurgents are fighters and also dress in hijabs. It is part of the strategy of war. They can lure you into thinking that is the place and cause a problem. We are finalising arrangements with the Pakistani and Italians to get more cameras fixed on our airplanes.”

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army on Friday confirmed the deaths of some soldiers attached to a base in Sabon Gari in Damboa Local Government Area of Borno State, ordering troops to avenge the deaths of their colleagues.

The base was attacked by terrorists on Tuesday with four soldiers reportedly killed while another four were injured.

The Acting General Officer Commanding, 7 Division, Brig. Gen. Victor Ezugwu, said this while visiting the affected area on Friday.

In a similar vein, the Bauchi State Police Command said that it had arrested a notorious and wanted member of the Boko Haram sect.

In a statement signed by the Commissioner of Police in the state, Garba Umar, the command said detectives arrested the suspect on Wednesday following an intelligence report.

He said that the suspect had confessed to killing 150 people in Bama, Borno State.