Nigeria, Cameroon in serious argument over who killed Shekau

ABUJA—Nigeria and Cameroon were, yesterday, locked in an argument over who killed Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau and where he was killed.

Shekau, Boko Haram leader

In a rare public show by the Cameroonian army (Armee Camerounaise), photos of Shekau were made public alongside a statement claiming he was killed during a cross-border raid deep inside Nigeria by its military.

A Cameroon military source, according to Cameroon Concord, said on Sunday night that Shekau was killed following an aerial bombardment of his hideout inside Nigeria.

On the other hand, the Nigerian Army is also laying claim to the same feat but without photographic evidence yet. The Nigerian Army said its soldiers might have killed Shekau in Konduga, a town some kilometres away from Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

According to a report posted on its twitter handle, DHQ said yesterday that, “there was no raid whatsoever in any part of Nigeria’s territory in pursuit of terrorists as claimed in some reports allegedly quoting Cameroon military authorities.

“All operations on-going in the environs of Konduga and all associated border locations within the country are completely being undertaken by Nigerian troops.”

Reportedly, the Cameroon armed forces since Sunday have been in serious combat against thousands of Boko Haram fighters trying to enter Cameroon via Fotokol from Gamboru Ngala in Nigeria.

This came amid confusion over Shekau’s identity as military experts are trying to ascertain whether the dead ‘Shekau’ was Isa Damsaka or Bashir Mohammed, who are both top commanders believed to be posing as Shekau.

Meanwhile, efforts to exchange some of the abducted Chibok school girls with Boko Haram prisoners have flopped again.

The Nigerian military claimed that its troops might have killed Shekau on September 17 during a desperate attempt by the sect to capture Konduga as part of their plot to eventually march on and capture Maiduguri.

“It is getting more certain that the terrorist commander who has been mimicking Shekau in those videos is the one killed in Konduga on September 17, 2014, the military revealed.

The military, however, cautioned that “the process of confirming the dead body we have is the same as that character who has been posing as Shekau is ongoing. He is definitely a prominent terrorist commander. I don’t want to say anything about this yet, please.”

The military source insisted that the resemblance between Shekau and the corpse in their custody is too striking to be a coincidence. They cited his facial marks, beard and teeth in addition to the recovery by Nigerian troops of some of the armoured vehicles and Hilux SUVs that had featured in previous videos of the prime suspect. The source assured that the Defence Headquarters will soon address the nation after full investigation of their latest discovery.

The counter-claims by both countries have raised some posers: Who actually killed Shekau and where was he killed and how authentic are the claims?

Confusion over Shekau’s identity

Indeed, confusion reigns supreme over Shekau’s identity. Strident efforts by the Nigerian military high command to establish the true identity of the top Boko Haram leader who was shot dead last week, continued in earnest yesterday, even as the video of the slain man was obtained exclusively by Vanguard.

The military, it was learnt, had been cautious in making a formal announcement that Shekau had been killed as a similar declaration last year, was instantly countered by the sect, following the emergence of another ‘Shekau’ in several video posts on the Internet.

Vanguard gathered from top security sources that although a bearded man, who resembled Shekau in several material details, was shot dead in Konduga last week, the military was not sure whether the slain man was Isa Damsaka or Bashir Mohammed, who the security agencies claim had been mimicking the real Abubakar Shekau, said to have been killed since June 2013.

The apparent fear over the death of Shekau, in the battle for Konduga, it was also learnt, has caused some disquiet in the Boko Haram camp, especially as the video of the dead commander surfaced on the internet yesterday.

In the six-second video, the critically wounded ‘Shekau’ was seen lying on the ground writhing in pains as men in military uniform and civilians surround him with some voices saying, “Waste that man! Waste that man!”

However, the Australian negotiator, Dr. Stephen Davis, who claims to have worked closely with Abubakar Shekau, said yesterday that he was convinced that the real Shekau was killed since June 2013 by the Nigerian security agencies.

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Nigeria, Cameroon in serious argument over who killed Shekau