HURIWA Commends Arrival of US Security Forces

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

The Human Rights Watch Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has applauded the Government of the United States for fielding American security forces to partner her Nigerian counterpart in counterterrorism operations to wipe out terrorists engaged in the massive killings of Nigerian citizens.

HURIWA averred the U.S. Africa Command had announced that a small team of American forces has been deployed to Nigeria.

HURIWA recalled Reuters reported on Tuesday night, February 3, the deployment follows an agreement between the two countries to more effectively counter terrorist threats in West Africa.

The report said the deployed team brings “unique capabilities from the United States.

Nigeria’s Minister of Defense, Christopher Musa, has also confirmed the presence of the team but did not provide further details.

According to the report, the deployment of U.S. forces comes after pressure from Washington on the Nigerian government.

U.S. President Donald Trump had previously accused Nigeria of failing to protect Christians from Islamist militants in the country’s northwest.

HURIWA has however cautioned the defence minister should ensure the military chiefs put out preemptive strategy to stop saboteurs embedded within the armed forces of Nigeria from leaking intelligence shared with the Nigerian military by the United States forces to terrorists.

It stated: “Nigerian security heads must root out undesirable elements within the armed forces that collude with terrorists and are in the habit of leaking out information and intelligence from the military to terrorists which mostly compromise counterterrorism operations.

“If the activities of saboteurs aren’t minimised by Nigeria, then the United States forces may not trust us to maintain the partnership which is largely in our own interest.”

Besides, HURIWA has called out the heads of security and Intelligence institutions in Nigeria for abysmally failing to prevent the Tuesday’s bloody attacks on different communities in Kwara State by Islamic terrorists which culminated in the gruesome murder of over 40 citizens.

In a media statement by the National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, HURIWA said it is disturbing and totally unacceptable that citizens are left to die in their numbers before the security forces are mobilised to the affected communities.

The group also insisted the repeated attacks on communities in Kwara State without the security forces and the intelligence community knowing about them and moving fast to prevent the bloody violence is reminiscent of a failed security and intelligence system.

“HURIWA is convinced that if the security forces alongside the intelligence community are efficient and effective, they ought to map up the flash points of possible infiltration by terrorists and then implement fool-proof measures to stop the attackers before they strike the communities.

“There is no doubt that the security forces are aware that terrorists who operate in Niger State could easily move into the nearest place outside their base if they are facing confrontation by the armed security forces of Nigeria. 

“We expect that the security and intelligence institutions should have contingencies and strategies in place that can very seamlessly be activated to prevent the incursions of terrorists from their place of operational dominance to safer places especially when the security forces are waging the counter insurgency and counter terrorism war.

“For the mere fact that this is not being done in Niger and also the ineffective deployment of technologies to combat terrorist attacks, shows a collapse of the security and intelligence system in Nigeria.”

HURIWA recalled that following the terrorists’ attacks in Woro and Nuku communities of Kaiama Local Government Area of Kwara State, Tuesday evening, Soldiers and Forest Guards have taken over the communities, even as the death toll in the affected communities has risen to forty persons.

But HURIWA condemned the belated reaction of the Nigerian security agencies as unfortunate and disappointing just as it expressed the opinion that if the intelligence community was up and doing and successfully generated intelligence about these terrorists, the bloodshed in Kwara State on Tuesday could have been avoided.