TheCable

Mike Omeri, coordinator of the national information centre (NIC), says Boko Haram’s decision to join the Islamic State (ISIS) cannot stop Nigeria from eliminating the sect.

In a statement on Tuesday, Omeri said the decision of Boko Haram to join ISIS is as a result of pressure from the four-nation coalition currently “rooting out Boko Haram out of its strongholds and degrading its combat abilities”.

He regarded Boko Haram’s pledge of allegiance to ISIS as an act of desperation in the face of weakness.

On Saturday, Boko Haram pledged its allegiance to ISIS via an audio message from its leader, Abubakar Shekau.

Omeri has said regardless of the move, Boko Haram was “on the way to being eliminated”.

“No foreign extremists can or will change this fact – as long as the Nigerian military continues to receive cooperation and commitment from its citizens and allies,” he said.

“There will be no Islamic State in Nigeria, the only state that will exist is the united Federal Republic of Nigeria. (The pledge of allegiance is) an act of desperation and comes at a time when Boko Haram is suffering heavy losses.”

A regional force from Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger has recorded a number of successes against the militants since the recovery attacks started in February.

The operation is designed to secure and stabilise the region in time for the general election postponed by six weeks.

On Monday, troops from Chad and Niger took Damasak, in Borno state, Nigeria, an attack which saw the death of 10 Chadian soldiers and about 300 militants.

As Boko Haram continues to lose territories to the military, the sect is resorting to guerrilla tactics in urban areas, killing at least 58 people in three separate bombings in the Borno state capital, Maiduguri on Saturday.