The Nigerian army says news about the recapture by Boko Haram of the Borno town of Marte after it was liberated from them in February should not be any cause for concern because the town is largely deserted by its inhabitants and was only being used as a hideout by the militants fleeing from its offensives in Sambisa and elsewhere.
Reacting to the reports via a statement on its website, the Defence HQ said in line with the need to ensure more aggressive patrol of many threatened isolated communities while the assault on forests and mountain hideouts of Boko Haram was ongoing, “there has not been any static deployment of troops in Marte for quite sometime.
“Only occasional patrols and surveillance have been undertaken towards the area as the bulk of troops are engaged in the operation to clear the terrorists from all identified enclaves in the forest
“Besides, Marte had been deserted by citizens most of whom had fled to other towns while others are in IDP camps located in Maiduguri and other places.
“It is understandable that terrorists escaping from the offensive operations in Sambisa and other enclaves are looking for place of respite,’’ the statement explained adding that the terrorists must have found Marte deserted and decided to harbour there.
“Now that their presence is reported, the issue will definitely be addressed in a very short while.
“There is really no cause for alarm in the way some reports are presenting this situation as if it is a meaningful resurgence of terrorists.
The statement concluded by urging Nigerians to “wait and see” because ” there will be no respite for terrorists anywhere in Nigeria.”
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