Aftermath of a heavy gun battle between troops of the Multinational Joint Task Force MNJTF and Boko Haram terrorists in Darak community, in the fringes of Lake Chad, which lasted for several hours, 64 terrorists met their waterloo, 8 terrorists were captured, several of them ran into the bush and waters with bullet wounds while three boats with which conveyed them for the attack were destroyed.
MNJTF Forces on their part, lost 10 soldiers, 8 soldiers were wounded and evacuated for medical attention and another 8 civilians killed, in the bloody battle which took place in Northern Cameroon.
A statement giving details of the operation, entitled ‘Section of International and Local Media Aiding BokoHaram Narrative’, the Chief Information of MNJTF, Col Timothy Antigha said, “The attention of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) has been drawn to an emerging pattern of international/local media coverage of the crisis in the Lake Chad Area which suggests sympathy and support for Boko Haram activities and narrative, at the expense of the efforts being made by a coalition of the Armed Forces of countries of the Lake Chad Basin.
“This pattern of coverage has been observed over a period, but the recent report of the clash between Sector 1 of the MNJTF and Boko Haram Terrorists in Darak in Northern Cameroon, which portrayed Boko Haram as being dominant, has called for serious concern.
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“In this instance, the casualty figures quoted by the AFP and slant given by its local collaborator the News Express (on line) is very unfortunate.
“For the record, two days ago, about 300 heavily armed Boko Haram Terrorists invaded Darak.
“However, they were met with stiff MNJTF resistance resulting in the a bloody gun battle which lasted for several hours.
At the end of the fire fight, the following statistics were recorded: 10 MNJTF personnel killed in Action, 8 MNJTF wounded and evacuated for medical attention, 8 civilians killed and one wounded.
“64 Boko Haram Terrorists killed, 8 captured, Several wounded, 3 Boko Haram boats destroyed, and several arms and ammunition confiscated.
Antigha said, “This bold and ruthless response by the MNJTF is in keeping with the resolve of the Force to make the Lake Chad Area untenable for terrorists of whatever persuasion.
“The MNJTF understands that the news business thrives on timeliness. However, it is always desirable to ensure that facts and accuracy are not lost in the quest for urgency, in order not to give the impression that evil is favoured over good.
“To facilitate the need of accuracy, the MNJTF is always ready to respond to requests for verification or confirmation of information on occurrences within its Area of Operation.
“The media is therefore urged to keep faith with a key tenet of the profession, which is the sanctity of facts”.
Colonel Timothy Antigha
Chief of Military Public Information
MNJTF
N’Djamena – Chad
