A total of 210 members of the militant group Boko Haram—including forcibly conscripted fighters and their families—surrendered on Tuesday, July 1st, to troops from the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) in Bol, in the Lake Chad region, the force announced.
The mass surrender in the Baga Sola area comes as a result of intensified military operations and a campaign of deradicalisation led by Sector 2 of Operation Lake Chad. Ten weapons of various calibers were recovered.
According to an MNJTF statement, the former combatants admitted their involvement in several attacks in the towns of Bakatolerom, Barkalam, Litri, and Kaiga Ngbouboun.
Sector 2 Commander, Major General Moussa Haussa, praised “the courage and professionalism of the troops,” reiterating that “terrorism has no future in the region.”
He added that the individuals who surrendered would be treated with dignity and enrolled in a deradicalisation program.
Speaking in Bol, the Governor of the Lake Region, Brigadier General Saleh Haggar Tidjani, welcomed the former fighters and announced the upcoming launch of training and reintegration programs to help them return to civilian life.
The MNJTF described the surrender as a strategic blow to Boko Haram and a clear sign of the effectiveness of its dual approach, combining military pressure and reintegration initiatives.
CA/te/sf/lb/as/APA