The Chief of Army Staff (CoAS), Lt-Gen. Waidi Shuaibu has denied the killings of an officer and 39 others in the Ngoshe community Boko Haram attacks that claimed over 100 lives on Tuesday in Borno State.

Shuaibu provided details during an official visit to assess the levels of damage to both lives and fighting vehicles and equipment at the Maimalari Cantonment in Maiduguri, Borno State.

During the visit, he directed the immediate reinforcement of troops and deployment of additional equipment to the affected areas to sustain the momentum against the fleeing terrorists.

He reaffirmed the Nigerian Army’s commitment to decisively dealing with the terrorists and ensuring that such attacks are thwarted.

He said: “The claims of killing 40 soldiers in the attacked community of Ngoshe are false. The report relied largely on unverified sources from other security agencies in the state.

“During our three-hour closed-door meeting at the theatre command and control centre here in Maiduguri, we found that a few gallant soldiers with their commander lost their lives while protecting the border community with Cameroon.”

Shuaibu lamented that the report presented a distorted account of the incident and failed to reflect the gallant efforts of troops who bravely defended four communities against last week’s coordinated terrorist assaults.

The attacks on the five communities occurred when remnants of the Boko Haram terrorists, who had earlier been dislodged from the Sambisa Forest sustained offensive operations by the gallant troops.

He added that the insurgents regrouped and launched coordinated night attacks from multiple directions on vulnerable communities and Army bases located at Ngoshe, Konduga, Mainok and Jakana on the south fringe of Sambisa Forest.

Beyond the protection of five communities in the state, Shuaibu stated, “Our troops responded swiftly and fought gallantly in repelling the terrorists and defending the affected communities.

He explained that during the intense engagements, over 50 terrorists were also neutralised.

“Sadly, a Commanding Officer and some brave soldiers paid the supreme price, while courageously confronting the attackers and preventing further devastation to lives and fighting vehicles and equipment in the ongoing counter-terrorism operations in the Northeast,” he said.

Shuaibu stressed that the troops were not overrun as portrayed in the report. Rather, they engaged the terrorists from multiple fronts in a determined effort to protect innocent civilians and restore normalcy.

According to him, the terrorists employed indiscriminate explosives and heavy night gunfire, which regrettably resulted in civilian casualties as many residents were caught in the crossfire created by the terrorists’ reckless actions at Ngoshe.

He noted that coordinated ground and air operations are ongoing to pursue the fleeing terrorists, dismantle their regrouping elements and rescue civilians who may have been abducted during the attacks.

He urged the public to disregard exaggerated and misleading reports aimed at undermining the morale of troops who continue to make enormous sacrifices in defence of the nation.

Shuaibu assured Nigerians that the Nigerian army will maintain the operational momentum until all terrorist elements are completely neutralised.