into Cameroon following fierce fighting with
Boko Haram insurgents.
The Cameroonian Army Spokesman, Lt Col
Didier Badjek, who confirmed this, said the
troops had already been disarmed.
But the Director of Defence Information,
Maj. -Gen Chris Olukolade, said the soldiers
merely strayed into Cameroon and therefore
were not "deserters."
Badjek told the British Broadcasting
Corporation on Monday that the disarmed
Nigerian soldiers were being
accommodated in schools in Maroua, about
80 kilometres from the Nigerian border.
The BBC which added that there were clashes
in the border town of Gamboru Ngala, said
that thousands of civilians also fled to
Cameroon.
Our correspondent in Maiduguri gathered that
Boko Haram insurgents had at about 5.15am
on Monday invaded Gamboru, forcing both
civilians and soldiers to flee to Cameroon.
One of the residents who called from
Cameroon, said the insurgents went straight
to attack the military base and police station
in the town.
He said an initial attack was repelled by the
military which killed many of the insurgents.
The resident added that about two hours later,
the insurgents regrouped and launched a
fresh attack on the troops.
He said. "They engaged the military and
caused them to retreat into Cameroon. It was
most likely that the Nigerian soldiers ran out
ammunition.
"But some soldiers later emerged with their
Cameroonian counterparts and continued the
battle with the insurgents.
"As I am speaking to you now (4pm on
Monday), we are still hearing sound of
gunshot miles away, meaning they are still
engaging themselves."
An elderly woman who did not want her name
in print, told journalists on the telephone
from her temporary abode in Cameroon, that
she fled " when the shooting became intense
in parts of the town.''
She said that she saw many corpses while
fleeing to Cameroon.
But in Abuja, Olukolade told one of our
correspondents that the 480 soldiers strayed
into Cameroon while in pursuit of the
insurgents.
He said the soldiers were on their way back to
the country and would soon be reunited with
their units in the North-East.
The army spokesman stated further that it was
the standard practice for soldiers who strayed
into a foreign but friendly country to be
disarmed.
He explained that the soldiers were not
expected to react because there was no
hostility involved in the issue.
Olukolade also denied the claim by the
insurgents that they had taken control of
Gamboru Ngala, stressing that security
operatives were still confronting them in the
town.
He said, "In the pursuit of the insurgents,
some of our soldiers strayed into Cameroun.
The military authorities are in touch with the
Cameroonian authorities and the soldiers are
on their way back and would soon be united
with their units in the country.
"These are normal procedures; when an Army
enters a country and are not on a hostile
mission; normally, they won't fight back.
"All that has been sorted out to the best of
my knowledge.
"As for Gamboru Ngala, I can tell you that the
operation is still going on as we are speaking."
The DHQ later issued a statement in which it
again explained the presence of Nigerian
soldiers in Cameroon.
The statement on its official website,
defenceinfo.mil.ng, stated that the troops
had to submit their weapons to the
Camerounian authorities to show that they
were not on any offensive mission.
It added that it was wrong to describe the
presence of the soldiers in Cameroun as
defection in view of discussions between the
military leaderships of two countries and
contacts made with the soldiers about their
safety.
The statement read, "The presence of the
Nigerian troops in Cameroun was as a result
of a sustained battle between the troops and
the terrorists around the borders with
Cameroun which saw the Nigerian troops
charging through the borders in a tactical
manoeuvre.
"Eventually, they found themselves on
Camerounian soil. Being allies, the normal
protocol of managing such incident demanded
that the troops submit their weapons in order
to assure the friendly country that they were
not on a hostile mission.
"Following necessary discussions between
Nigerian and Camerounian military
authorities, the issues had been sorted out.
Subsequently, the troops are on their way
back to join their unit in Nigeria.
"The reference to the incidence as a defection
is therefore not appropriate considering the
discussion between the two countries' military
leadership and the series of contacts with the
soldiers who have confirmed that they are
safe.
"Meanwhile, troops are repelling a group of
terrorists who are trying to enter the country
through Gamborou Ngala. A group of them
who fizzled into the town are being pursued."
Boko Haram had on Sunday released a video
in which it said it had established an Islamic
state in the towns and villages it controls in
the North-East.
Last week, a group of 40 soldiers allegedly
refused to follow orders to go and fight the
insurgents, saying the militants were better
equipped.
Insurgents also seized one of Nigeria's two
main riot police training academies, which is
near Gwoza, a town they claimed to have
captured earlier this month.
Less than two weeks ago, the wives of some
soldiers had protested at the Giwa Barracks in
Maiduguri against their husbands being sent
to the Boko Haram militants.
In May, some soldiers opened fire on their
commander, Maj-Gen Ahmed Mohammed, at
Maiduguri's Maimalari barracks, blaming him
for the killing of their colleagues by Boko
Haram fighters.
We'll defend Nigeria –FG
The Federal Government has however said it is
prepared to defend Nigeria even to the last
citizen in the country.
It said no group would succeed in dividing the
country and noted that it had confidence in
the Nigerian Army despite threats by Boko
Haram.
The Minister of Information, Labaran Maku,
who disclosed this during an interview on
Channels Television, said adventurers that
were contending with Nigeria's destiny would
not succeed.
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