NIGERIAN MILITARY COMBING FOR EXTREMISTS, BOKO

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABUJA 001398

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/W, INR/AA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/01/2019
TAGS: PGOV SOCI SENV EAGR PREL NI
SUBJECT: NIGERIAN MILITARY COMBING FOR EXTREMISTS, BOKO
HARAM DEPUTY ARRESTED

REF: ABUJA 1392

Classified By: Acting Political Counselor Anthony R. Eterno for reasons
1.4 (b) and (d)

1.(C) SUMMARY: Fighting between security forces and suspected
Boko Haram extremists has subsided, although one local press
report states as many as 43 extremists were killed July 30 in
a gun battle in Yobe. Boko Haram,s top leader remains at
large, but much of the group,s senior leadership is
reportedly in custody or on the run. There are reports of
widespread and perhaps indiscriminate arrests of suspected
extremists, as well as excessive use of force in some areas,
though reports that the military used artillery in July 28
fighting cannot be confirmed. Indications are that the
situation is calming down, but we are not out of the woods
yet; among other remaining challenges is the fate of as many
as 4,000 displaced persons. END SUMMARY.

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MILITARY AND POLICE CAMPAIGNS WINDING DOWN
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2. (C) According to U.S. Mission contacts, other reporting
channels,
and local news reporting, Nigerian military and police forces
are in the final stages of rooting out Boko Haram members
across northern Nigeria. There were no reports of new
attacks on July 30, except for an unconfirmed local press
report that as many as 43 persons were killed in a gun battle
between security forces and suspected militants on the
outskirts of Potiskum, Yobe's second largest city. Borno
state Chief of Protocol Ahmad Sanda told Emboffs that the
state's security chief assured him that the attacks are over.
In addition, Borno state Permanent Secretary for the
Department of Political and Cabinet Affairs Hayatuddeen Baba
Omar told us that the major concern is not further attacks,
but how the state is going to deal with a small number of
civilians who have fled to Borno from other states out of
fear.


3. (C) On July 29, Borno Governor Ali Modu Sheriff told the
Ambassador that an intense effort is underway to "prevent
Mohammed Yusuf from leaving the state." Asked why he thought
people follow Yusuf, Sheriff replied that "Yusuf is playing
on the intelligence, poverty levels, and vulnerability of the
youth. No religion teaches what he is saying and doing; no
religion calls for the destruction of a nation or of a
society; and no religion condemns youth education,
particularly Islam." Ambassador expressed concern with
civilian safety to which Sheriff responded that he is
"working hard to ensure civilian protection -- letting people
know as much as possible to remove themselves from certain
areas." Sheriff stated that as, far as he knew, there have
been no civilian casualties. According to Sheriff, Yusuf's
children ironically are attending a Lebanese-Nigerian school
with western curricula.

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BIG ARRESTS IN BORNO, SOKOTO, KANO, AND GOMBE
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4. (C) Borno State Police Command Public Relations Officer
Malam Isa Azare told reporters that police and other security
agencies arrested the deputy leader of Boko Haram, Bukar
Shikwa, in Maiduguri on July 29 after a state-wide manhunt.
In addition to Shikwa's arrest, Sokoto state police also
arrested a former university lecturer, Kadiru Atiku, who is
suspected of being Boko Haram's local leader, as well as five
other extremists. Meanwhile, Kano State Urban Planning and
Development Managing Director Hassan Na-Abba told reporters
that his agency, with the help of heavily armed policemen,
was ordered "to bulldoze the residence and mosque of Boko
Haram's Kano local leader, Salisu Al Amin." Seven other
suspected Boko Haram members were arrested in Gombe State on
July 29, according to Police Commissioner Ibi, but warned
that it was still premature to label them as extremists until
the investigation has concluded. Gombe State Police
Commissioner Joseph Ahmed Ibi informed reporters that 3,000

ABUJA 00001398 002 OF 002


policemen are on duty surveilling the state with patrols and
checkpoints.

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CIVILIAN TOLL
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5. (C) Four days of Boko Haram attacks have taken their toll
on civilians. People living near the epicenter of the
fighting have fled to other areas. Nigeria's National
Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) estimates the number of
displaced persons at 4,000O, but other estimates go as low as
1,000. Two students in Maiduguri told Emboffs that they were
forced to relocate to another part of town and that many
families have run short of food supplies. Other reports
indicate that corpses still lie in the streets and on the
floor of a public hospital, raising fears of a cholera
outbreak.


6. (C) The security services have reportedly made widespread
arrests of suspected extremists, many based on little or no
evidence. Local Nigeria Human Rights Commission and
International Red Cross staff are constrained in reporting
because telephone communications have been effectively shut
down since Sunday night, although at least some cybercafs
remain up and running. A Sufi activist in Maiduguri
complained to Emboffs of excessive use of force by security
agents who alleged shot motorists and pedestrians &just
because they have a beard." "As a result," he said,
"residents are shaving their beards and changing the style of
their dress to avoid being targeted."


7. (C) COMMENT: While Boko Haram,s top leader remains at
large, much of the group,s senior leadership appears to be
captured or on the run. If the operational phase of the
security campaign is winding down, the national focus will
shift to how the security services performed and how
displaced and detained persons are being treated. Nigerian
officials stress the anti-extremist operation, sparked by a
coordinated assault on government buildings in four states,
was led by police, but it is clear that the military played a
major, perhaps decisive, role in the operations. We will
continue to monitor the situation closely, and to urge
Nigerian officials of the importance of delivering on the
promised
GON commission of inquiry into the attacks. We are also
stressing that displaced persons and detainees should be
treated in a manner consistent with both Nigerian and
international legal norms. END COMMENT.


8. (U) This cable was coordinated with Consulate Lagos.
SANDERS