TheCable

President Goodluck Jonathan has confirmed that Nigerian Islamic terror group, Boko Haram fighters has been training with the sophisticated terrorist sect, Islamic State (ISIS).

According to Voice of America, Jonathan had long suspected the Nigerian sect of having alliances with international extremist groups.

“So we know the links are there. But even now, we may not know the degree of linkages as to how much funds are coming in from them, the kind of volume of weapons coming in from them, the nationalities coming from them,” Jonathan said.

“But the training… some of the Boko Haram members go to have their training in the ISIS camp and come back.”

Jonathan who refused to mention the countries where these terrorists were being trained by ISIS, also spoke on the postponed election, saying the military did not have the appropriate weaponry to deal with the insurgents until recently.

He admitted that the intervention of foreign military, from Chad, Niger and Cameroon had been instrumental to recent victories over the insurgents.

He denied that his government was restraining foreign troops from moving into some Boko Haram territory, saying Cameroon previously denied Nigeria permission to pursue Boko Haram into its own territory as well. He concluded that restrictions on foreign troops were matters of coordination.

“I think the idea is that – look, for any major aggression, we should know. Where possible, let some Nigerian soldiers also be with you.

“So we now have this technical people who are trainers and technicians, who are to train our people on how to use them, and technicians that help the maintenance, at the same time training our people how to maintain this equipment.”

He added that two unnamed companies were involved in the training but declined to offer nationalities or numbers of the trainers.

Jonathan dismissed the suggestion that Boko Haram’s insurgency had come to define his time in office.

“Yes, it’s a major security issue; it’s the number one security issue we have as a nation. But definitely you cannot define us by Boko Haram,” he said.

In a similar interview, Buhari praised the heroics of the Nigerian soldiers, saying he was not surprised by their gallantry, as it was the government that was shirking in its own responsibilities.