Brigadier General Chris Olukolade, the Director of Defence Information, Defence Headquarters, on Thursday in Maiduguri, said that there had not been any civilian casualty in the ongoing operation in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa States.
He said this while answering questions from newsmen during a media tour of Borno State for the media to have first-hand information on the ongoing operations.
According to him: “The concern of the government from the beginning of this operation is to ensure that there is no civilian casualty.
“I therefore want to tell you that this has been substantially achieved. “The next thing is to ensure that miscreants and trouble makers do not have access to civilian populated areas to cause other problems.
“To the best of my knowledge, no civilian has been killed. “Anyone that was killed in a camp cannot call himself a civilian.” According to him, most of the camps are populated by terrorists who are the subject of the operation. Olukolade said the operation was a wholesome one that involved not only the military but all the security agencies in the country.
Also speaking, Lieutenant Colonel Gabriel Olurunyomi, Commander of Combat Team C of the Joint Task Force, said the troops had begun a process of peace and confidence building. Olurunfemi said that what the task force was doing after dislodging the Boko Haram sect was to work with the police to restore law and order in the states.
“Presently, we are on peace and confidence building for the people and that is why it is safe for you to be here now,” he added.
An Al-jazeera report had alleged that civilians were being killed in the three states which President Goodluck Jonathan on May 14 declared state of emergency.
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