The Chief of Defence Staff, CDS, General Olufemi Oluyede, has raised fresh concerns over internal complicity in the protracted insurgency in the North-East, urging residents of Borno and Yobe to take ownership of the fight against terrorism.

Oluyede made this call after a high-level security meeting in Maiduguri.

His call signals a strategic shift in emphasis from purely kinetic military operations to community-driven counterinsurgency, as Nigeria battles the enduring threat posed by Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province.

The meeting, which lasted about four hours, brought together top military commanders, including the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shuaibu, the Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, Maj.-Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar and other top military officials.

According to him, intelligence reports indicate that many of those responsible for attacks over the past 15 years originate from the same communities bearing the brunt of the violence.

This assertion reinforces long-standing concerns within security circles that local knowledge terrain familiarity, social networks, and community cover has continued to provide operational advantages to insurgents.

The CDS cited a recent example in Kukawa, where troops discovered wounded terrorists hiding within the community during post-attack clearance operations, pointing to the challenge of distinguishing between civilians and collaborators.

Oluyede disclosed that the Nigerian military is adapting, including the deployment of advanced drone systems to enhance surveillance, targeting, and battlefield coordination.

Eze Chidiebere Paul

Eze Chidiebere Paul

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