Although sixteen soldiers died in the attack on Baroua, near Nigeria, on the night of August 25, no civilians were injured or killed. Niger’s defense forces therefore opposed Boko Haram’s jihadists. According to the ministry, about 50 terrorists have been neutralized. Baroua was not by chance: this municipality is the first where the state organized the relocation of displaced persons as part of its “return to the village” operation. The will to continue seems intact.
Resistance, resilience. Ambitious, “return to the village” operation was launched by President Mohamed Bazoum, who arrived in person in Baroua on 2 July. Six thousand people returned to settle there.
A reinforced military presence with the support of special forces, food and water supplies, reconstruction of official buildings: the Nigerian authorities are not hiding, they expected retaliation from the Boko Haram group.
“We knew that Baroua would be attacked because Boko Haram will by all means try to sabotage the return of the population,” explained Issa Lémine, governor of the region, along with Guillaume Thibaultat Diffa.
Hence the significant presence of security forces to protect the entire sector: at night from Tuesday to Wednesday, by crossing Lake Chad on foot, on horseback and in a canoe, the jihadists used a powerful military unit. Must meet. No civilians in Baroua were injured or killed during this offensive.
The governor of the Baroua region now wants to stimulate the population:
The message is to stay, not leave the villages, he urges. The balance of power will change, we will no longer accept that people will be hunted out again by Boko Haram. And we will ensure that the population can return and stay permanently in their villages. For the authorities, the business must continue. Some 120,000 people are still being displaced in Niger, and Baroua must be an example to follow.
One of these displaced people from Baroua, Adam Boulama, is currently in Niamey, where he is monitoring the situation hour by hour. “Bosso’s last attacks failed, Baroualeur’s attack was a big hit,” he said. The situation has therefore changed in favor of the government and the population. “
For him, two things allow the residents to be secure: political will, but also the presence of young people from the region within the contingents that protect the area.
If civilian kidnappings of parts of Boko Haram increase, there is a willingness to resist among young people. “It is absolutely necessary to brave the fear, to resist. The community itself asked to be allowed to return to the site. I remain optimistic, we will get there, says Mara Mamadou, from the civil society in Diffa.
For Mara Mamadou, coordinator of civil society organizations in the Diffa region, there are no zero risks
Authorities in Niger expect further attacks from Boko Haram in Lake Chad. But if we are far from returning to normal, fear still seems to diminish day by day.
Since the authorities’ launch of the operation in June, almost 26,000 people have been returned to 19 locations. This is only an early stage, but the results seem encouraging.
►Read: Boko Haram’s murderous raid on a village reinvested by previously displaced people
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