iS BOKO HARAM LEADER DEAD?

A few hours after the Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau, claimed in a new video, that he was “alive and well,” the Nigerian military authorities have debunked the claim, insisting that he had been killed.

Mr. Shekau in the new video, obtained by the AFP news agency, debunked the September 24 claim by the military that he had been killed, describing it as “propaganda.”

In that statement, the military spokesperson, Chris Olukolade, had said the sect leader was killed during a recent fight with the military in Konduga .

In the new clip, Mr. Shekau said, “Here I am alive. I will only die the day Allah takes my breath,’ he said in the 36-minute video. He added that the sect was running our…Islamic caliphate” and administering sharia punishment.

He added, “Nothing will kill me until my days are over….I’m still alive. Some people asked you if Shekau has two souls. No, I have one soul, by Allah. It is propaganda that is prevalent. I have one soul. I’m an Islamic student.”

Mr. Shekau also claimed in the video that the air force jet that was declared missing three weeks ago was shot down by his men.

The sect leader who spoke for 16 minutes in Arabic and Hausa did not indicate where or when the video was shot.

Mr. Shekau, the BBC reported, appeared in the video dressed in combat fatigues and black rubber boots, standing on the back of a pick-up van and firing an anti-aircraft gun into the air.

It also reported that he was flanked by four heavily armed masked fighters.

But in a statement posted on its blog on Thursday, the military insisted that Bashir Mohammed alias Abubakar Shekau was actually eliminated as corroborated by still photographs, video evidence and surrendering and captured terrorists.

Titled, “The Purported Shekau Video in Circulation,” the statement said, “The Defence Headquarters is studying the claims made in the video purportedly released by the terrorists showing their leader Abubakar Shekau as dismissing his death.

“From immediate observation and what some online news outlets claimed to have seen, the video did not indicate when it was shot neither did it show any proof of life or currency such as screen time or date. The video also did not make any reference to anything that has happened since the impostor’s reported death.

“It is also noteworthy that the air plane said to be mentioned in the video had been missing before he was killed. It should not surprise anybody if the terrorists decide to manipulate pictures, clone another Shekau or upload a pre-recorded video all in a bid to prove invincible.

“As far as we are concerned, the individual who was appearing in video and claiming to be the leader of the terrorist group was killed in the Kondunga battle in September. The resemblance of the corpse and that of the eccentric character was incontrovertible. His identity was equally corroborated by people who knew him before we announced his death.”

The military also said it was still conducting a thorough investigation into the new claims in the purported video just as it promised that justice would be served to whoever bears that name or designation and whoever engages in act.

We have killed Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau — Nigerian Military

The Nigerian military on Wednesday issued an official confirmation to reports that Abubakar Shekau, the eccentric leader of Boko Haram, whose death the military has claimed repeatedly only to turn out untrue, has been killed by security forces.

Officially, the military insists the real Mr. Shekau was killed by soldiers more than a year ago, but that his character had been assumed by another leader of the deadly group.

The impersonator is the man who appeared in several Boko Haram propaganda videos, claiming he is Mr. Shekau, the military said.

It was that new face of Mr. Shekau that was killed in a fierce clash with the military last week in Konduga, near Maiduguri, Borno State, defence spokesperson, Chris Olukolade, said Wednesday.

That man, Mr. Olukolade said, was Mohammed Bashir, known also with several aliases.

The statement Wednesday was the first official confirmation of the death of Mr. Shekau since news broke last week he had been killed in a confrontation as militants moved to attack Maiduguri.

While the Nigerian military, unofficially, laid claims to the killing of Mr. Shekau, its Cameroonian counterpart also claimed credit for it saying Mr. Shekau was killed at Gamboru near the border.

The Nigerian military rejects that claim.

Mr. Olukolade said the alleged Shekau’s double was targeted amongst other leaders of the group in Konduga when the military’s land and air forces engaged a convoy of combat vehicles conveying several militants.

“Several of the terrorists, including some of their commanders, lost their lives in the encounters which lasted an average of about 5 hours each,” the defence spokesperson said.

“The troops captured some of the terrorists and their equipment. In the course of those encounters, one Mohammed Bashir who has been acting or posing on videos as the deceased Abubakar Shekau, the eccentric character known as leader of the group died.

Mr. Olukolade said after the clash, the identity of Mr. Bashir was confirmed by the locals in Konduga. Mr. Bashir’s other names he said included Abubakar Shekau, alias Abacha Abdullahi Geidam alias Damasack.

“Since the name Shekau has become a brand name for the terrorists’ leader, the Nigerian military remains resolute to serve justice to anyone who assumes that designation or title as well as all terrorists that seek to violate the freedom and territory of Nigeria,” the military said.

Mr. Olukolade said 135 other terrorists on Tuesday evening surrendered along with equipment to troops around Biu Local Government Area.

A group of 88 submitted themselves at Mairiga/Bun – Yadi while another group of 45 terrorists were taken in around Mubi – Michika. They are all being interrogated and processed in conformity with the dictates of standard best practices.

“The Defence Headquarters applauds the gallantry of the Nigerian troops who have remained undaunted and professional in prosecuting this campaign against terror,” he said.

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military aircraft missing

A Nigerian air force jet has been missing for two days after disappearing in the country's far northeast, where troops are fighting Boko Haram insurgents, the military has said.

A search and rescue operation was under way for the Alpha jet which was on a routine operational mission on Friday over Adamawa state when contact was lost with the aircraft, the Nigerian armed forces said in a statement.

The aircraft, with two pilots on board, left its base in Yola, Adamawa, at about 0945GMT on Friday and had been expected back by midday the same day.

"Since then all efforts to establish contact with the aircraft have not yielded any positive result," military spokesman Chris Olukolade said in a statement, without providing further details.

Boko Haram has seized territory in Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe states in recent weeks, raising fears about a loss of government control in the far northeast and putting the military under pressure to put an end to the five-year-long armed movement.

Nigeria's military, backed by war planes, has been fighting to push back recent advances by Boko Haram into the north of Adamawa state and also towards Maiduguri, the state capital of neighbouring Borno state. The army said it beat back an attack outside the city of Maiduguri on Friday.

Boko Haram, which has killed thousands since it launched its anti-government rebellion in the northeast in 2009, has in recent weeks captured and held a string of towns and villages in the region, a departure from its usual hit-and-run tactics.

Its leader, Abubakar Shekau, is apparently trying to follow the example of Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, which has declared its own caliphate. Nigeria's government has vowed to take back the seized territory from Boko Haram.

BENJAMIN ADEKUNLE: THE BLACK SCORPION IS DEAD

YEMI OLAKITAN

Retired General of the Nigerian Army, Benjamin Adekunle, popularly known as Black Scorpion died yesterday, Saturday morning. According to reports, his wife, Folake announced his death.  Adekunle was born in Kaduna. His father was a native of Ogbomosho. He underwent secondary education at the government college, Okene , Kogi State. He enlisted in the Nigerian Army in 1958 after completing his school certificate examinations.  He passed the army selection examinations and thereafter was dispatched to the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in the UK, the British Army's initial officer entry academy. He was commissioned 2nd Lieutenant on December 15, 1960. As a platoon commander, he served in Kasai Province of Congo with the 1st Battalion, Queen's Own Nigeria Regiment.  In 1962, Lt. Adekunle became Aide-de-Camp to the governor of the eastern region, SirAkanu Ibiam. The following year, as a Captain, he was posted back to the Congo as Staff Captain.  In 1964, Major Adekunle attended the Defense Services Staff College at Wellington, in India. When he returned he was briefly appointed Adjutant General at the Army Headquarters in May 1965 to replace Lt. Col. Yakubu Gowon, who was proceeding on a course outside the country. However, he later handed over the position to Lt. Col. James Pam and was posted back to his old Battalion (1st Bn) in Enugu as a Company Commander.

Adekunle  assumed command of the Lagos Garrison as a substantive Lt. Col. When the Nigerian Civil War erupted in July 1967, Adekunle was tasked to lead elements which included two new battalions (7th and 8th) - to conduct the historic sea borne assault on Bonny in the Bight of Benin on 26 July 1968 (carried out by Major Isaac Adaka Boro's unit). This happened after the Federal Government gained confidence of most south western ethnic groups as a direct result of Biafra push to mid-west state and probe into Western region. Adekunle was promoted to Colonel after the Bonny landing.

The 6th (under Major Jalo) and 8th (under Major Ochefu) battalions of the Lagos Garrison subsequently took part in operations to liberate the Midwest following the Biafra invasion of August 1967. The 7th (under Major Abubakar) stayed behind to hold Bonny. Because Major Jalo's Unit was seconded to Lt. Col. Murtala Mohammed's 2nd Division, Adekunle was left with only the 8th Battalion at Escravos. He, therefore, protested to Army HQ and got the Lagos garrison upgraded to Brigade status through the creation of the 31 and 32 Battalions. However, Colonel Adekunle did not think the name "3 Infantry Division" was sensational enough nor did it project the nature of the unique terrain in which his men had to fight. Therefore, without formal approval from Army HQ, he renamed it the " 3 Marine Commando (3MCDO)." The "Black Scorpion" as he came to be known, was easily the most controversial, celebrated and mythologized figure in the war of attrition that laid the foundations for Nigeria's contemporary crisis; and threw a wedge into the national fabric. Benjamin "Adekunle's boys in the Midwest seized Escravos, Burutu, Urhonigbe, Owa and Aladima. They captured Bomadi and Patani, Youngtown, Koko, Sapele, Ajagbodudu, Warri, Ughelli, Orerokpe, Umutu and Itagba".

Benjamin Adekunle was promoted to Brigadier in 1972. After the war Adekunle was put in charge of decongesting the Lagos port that was having a chronic problem of clearing imported goods. He held this position until being compulsorily retired on August 20, 1974.

He attributed his problems during and after the war to his rivals in the army. In various interviews, he said there was always a rumor of coup linked to him until the army authority felt the concern to do something about it. He had large followings in both the army and public at large and was the most popular military commander during the war, apart from Obasanjo, who succeeded him and brought the war to an end with the same 3MC.

Adekunle led the Third Marine Commando Division with such great panache and determination that the foreign media, in looking for a human angle on the Biafran war, found him a ready source of news.

Adekunle was a key champion of the food blockade to Biafra. In a wartime interview he had with Randolph Baumann of Stern Magazine in Igweocha (published on August 18, 1968), he stated:^[3]

He died on September 13, 2014.

The late General Benjamin Adekunle who died this morning at the age of 78 has been described as a Soldier’s Soldier, a man of valour and unimaginable bravery, lion-hearted and a leader of men who served his Fatherland devotedly and without question when the country most needed him.   Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, a former governor of Lagos and All Progressives Congress, APC, national leader, paid tributes to Adekunle, alias Black Scorpion, in a statement he issued today.

Pastor Matthew Ashimolowo Floats Billion Naira University

Pastor Matthew Ashimolowo, the senior pastor of Kingsway International Christian Church (KICC), has completed his billion naira KICC University situated at Ode Omu, Osun state.Part of the requirements for the granting of a license for a university by the National UniversityCommission of Nigeria is that at least 250 acres of land be provided for a university campus but the KICC University sits atop over 500 acres.The university which would be structured around six faculties and 22 mainstream departments, has the  Schools of Medical Science and Pharmacy in the College of Medical Sciences as well as the Faculty of Law which are to run faculty/school-based degree programmes.

Initial academic activities would commence in two Schools namely: Humanities, Management & Social Sciences, and Information Science and Technology. Courses to be developed by the School of Information Science and Technology will be central to the teaching programmes in all Departments. In all, the university has 59 academic programmes.

Mrs Obama said what had to be said

The First Lady has presented the weekly presidential address from the White House, in an unusual break from tradition.

Mrs Obama used the radio and live-streamed statement to call for the release of the 276 Nigerian girls who were abducted by Islamist militant group Boko Haram.

"Like millions of people across the globe, my husband and I are outraged and heartbroken over the kidnapping of more than 200 Nigerian girls from their school dormitory in the middle of the night," she said.

"This unconscionable act was committed by a terrorist group determined to keep these girls from getting an education – grown men attempting to snuff out the aspirations of young girls."

She continued: "In these girls, Barack and I see our own daughters. We see their hopes, their dreams – and we can only imagine the anguish their parents are feeling right now.

"Many of them may have been hesitant to send their daughters off to school, fearing that harm might come their way.

"But they took that risk because they believed in their daughters’ promise and wanted to give them every opportunity to succeed."

Mrs Obama added that students in America should look at the Nigeria situation, and realise that they could not take their own educational opportunities for granted.

"These girls embody the best hope for the future of our world…and we are committed to standing up for them not just in times of tragedy or crisis, but for the long haul."

Mrs Obama has accompanied her husband for the presidential address before, but it is the first time that she has given the speech alone.

And although it is an unusual move, it is not unprecedented – Laura Bush, wife of George W. Bush, was the first to do so in 2001, and took the opportunity to denounce the treatment of women in Afghanistan.

Following the kidnapping of 276 girls on April 14, a campaign to secure their return has mushroomed. Activists are urging the Nigerian government to do more, and claim that President Goodluck Jonathan has been slow to respond and uninterested in their fate.

Mrs Obama last week posted a photo of herself holding up a sign reading "#Bring Back Our Girls" to show her support for the campaign.

On Friday night the United Nations Security Council unanimously declared that the mass kidnappings "may amount to crimes against humanity" under international law. But they made no explicit reference to charges in the International Criminal Court.

The 15 members of the council said they would follow the situation and consider "appropriate measures" to take against Boko Haram.

The statement urged their immediate release, without conditions.

Meanwhile, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon announced he was sending his special representative for West Africa, Said Djinnit, to Abuja to discuss ways of helping authorities locate the girls.