Crime

Borno villagers rejoice over Boko Haram commander’s killing

Published by Fakinlede Tope John on November 28th, 2023.

INSECURITY: Borno villagers rejoice over Boko Haram commander’s killing

One of the existing most notorious Boko Haram commanders, Abu Asad, has been killed at the Mandara Hills axis of Borno State.

Abu Asad, according to reports, was killed with scores of his combatants at Tungushe in an air raid by the air component of Operation Hadin Kai Theatre Command between midnight of Saturday and early morning of Sunday, November 25 and 26.

Locals in Mandara Hills and Gwoza jubilated as the Nigerian Air Force announced the elimination of the notorious Boko Haram commander at Tongoshe Mandara Hill.

The Nigerian Air Force confirmed the elimination of the terrorist kingpin, who was said to be a key figure in the Ali Ngulde faction of the terrorist group. Some say he was, at a time, even second in command to the late Abubakar Shekau.

Jubilant locals described the elimination of Abu Asad and scores of his combatants as a huge success in the war against terror in the North-East.

“We received the news of the elimination of Abu Asad and many of his fighters with high elation,” jubilant Hassan Mamman told The PUNCH on the phone.

“We are a famous agrarian community, but he (Abu Asad) led his fighters to torment our locality so much that we could not cultivate most of our farms this year’s farming season, “ Mamman said.

“If such successful air raids had been carried out before the farming season we would have cultivated most of our large farms far from the communities,” the farmer said.

He believed that the killing of Abu Asad would greatly demoralise his remaining fighters and force them to surrender.