Photo: The Vanguard

arms (file photo)

The Joint Task Force (JTF) in Kano yesterday discovered an abandoned car that resembled a container fully loaded with Improvised Explosive Devices [IEDs] along Western Bye Pass.

An eye witness told our correspondent that the car, which was abandoned there by some yet-to-be-identified persons drew the attention of members of the JTF who swiftly swung into action and thoroughly searched it.

The shocking discovery is coming as gunmen, suspected to be Boko Haram members yesterday killed six persons in Dikwa Local Government area of Borno State, following multiple attacks on selected public buildings in the town.

A former chairman of Dikwa, Alhaji Babagana Ali Karim, a police sergeant, an unknown civilian and three members of the sect were said to have been killed during the attack and the consequent shootout between the JTF and the sect.

The sect, in another development, vowed to carry out a series of attacks in parts of the north, to embarrass President Goodluck Jonathan for daring to fix June 2012 as deadline when the sect would be wiped out.

Undetonated Bombs In Kano

When the JTF team approached the car, our source said, they discovered a number of contents suspected to be IED's inside. Bomb detectives were however brought to the area to detonate the explosives while residents and passers-by were ordered to vacate the area.

Spokesman of the JTF, Col Ikedichi Iweha, who confirmed the incident, told journalists that all the explosives have been detonated.

According to him, the explosives might have been programmed to be detonated through the use of remote devices and therefore expressed praises to God for uncovering the evil plan.

He advised people to stay away from the area to avoid ripples of the explosives and urged members of the public to always cooperate with the committee in the fight against the sect members. He said the task before the task force was to bring lasting peace in the state and therefore called for understanding and support of the public. The car was later removed from the place by the JTF operatives.

Killings In Maiduguri

The spokesman for the Joint Task Force (JTF) in Maiduguri, Lt Col. Sagir Musa, who confirmed the attack in Maiduguri yesterday, added that the terrorists had attempted to burn the Local Government Secretariat of Dikwa. He said that the JTF immediately despatched operation buses of battalion troops and Nigerian police Force to repel the attack in Dikwa and Gamboru.

According to Lt Col Musa, Boko Haram members were killed during the incident, while many of them escaped with bullet wounds.

He also claimed that some weapons, including a pump action gun as well as an unregistered Isuzu pickup van and many dangerous arms and ammunition were recovered from the attackers.

Meanwhile, uneasy calm has enveloped Maiduguri town, following series of sporadic shootings between the JTF and Boko Haram members which began from the early morning of yesterday.

The development led to the closure of all business premises within Maiduguri metropolitan, as shop owners ran helter-skelter for safety.

Unconfirmed reports revealed that a soldier was killed in the process. But the details of the incident were sketchy as at press time.

Also, in a separate incident yesterday, a six-year-old daughter of a police corporal was shot and killed in an attack on their residence in Potiskum, Yobe State by suspected sect members, a police spokesman, Toyin Gbadegeshin, said in Damaturu.

Gbadegeshin said, "Two other children of the officer, a boy and a girl, sustained gunshot injuries and are now responding to treatment at the Potiskum General Hospital."

Boko Haram Plans June Attack

The sect revealed that it is planning a series of coordinated mass attacks in June to show President Jonathan that his prediction that the activities of the group would be fully curtailed by the end of June was faulty. The group particularly mentioned the northern region as its main target.

President Jonathan, in an interview with a South Korean news agency had announced June 2012 as the deadline for total eradication of the Boko Haram sect, a statement which attracted scathing reactions from Nigerians who felt that the president was either ill-advised or not circumspect. The Defence minister, Mohammed Bello, was also quoted recently as saying that the Boko Haram sect has been contained.

Apart from the planned attacks, the group also listed governors Isah Yuguda of Bauchi, Jonah Jang of Plateau; Babangida Aliyu of Niger State; Ibrahim Yakowa of Kaduna State as well as the former governor of Borno, Modu Sherriff and Defence Minister, Mohammed Bello as their targets of attack. The sect believes all the aforementioned personalities are collaborating with security agencies to arrest and kill their members.

A source close to Boko Haram disclosed that the group had recently distributed copies of Mr. Jonathan's speech in Hausa to its various cells to enable the various units prepare for massive attacks on security agencies, party offices and political figures in the North.

The source also revealed that due to the sect's desire for more political acceptance in the region, it plans various attacks on the political offices of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP) nationwide.

The sect, according to the source, is also planning to do an internal cleansing by eliminating those members believed to have sold out as well as those who have become informants. The leadership is perfecting an Internet monitoring platform to monitor their activities.