Cameroon deploys troops to Nigeria border to tackle Boko Haram

Cameroon has deployed about 1,000 troops and armoured vehicles to its border region with Nigeria as it steps up its military presence to counter a rising threat from Boko Haram Islamist militants.

Spokesman of the Cameroonian Ministry of Defence, Lieutenant-Colonel Didier Badjeck, said that about 1,000 Special Forces of Cameroon’s Rapid Intervention Brigade (BIR) left the capital on Monday.

Lieutenant Badjeck added that several new generation armored vehicles were deployed three days earlier.

The Cameroon Defence Spokesman added that their mission would be to carry out reconnaissance and be ready to respond with enough fire power.

According to Lieutenant Badjeck, the deployment is part of Cameroon’s effort to increase its military presence in the border region.

The Nigerian President, Goodluck Jonathan, had flown to Pretoria, South Africa on Friday, May 23 for high-level discussions with other African Heads of State and Government on combating terrorism in Africa.

The Government has been under pressure from Nigerians seeking a solution to the state of insecurity in the country, particularly since the abduction of over 200 schoolgirls from Government Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State by the Boko Haram sect.

The abduction of the schoolgirls has drawn wide condemnation from the international community, with some countries offering support in the search for the girls.