SAN FRANCISCO, July 21, (THEWILL) – The Chief of Army Staff, COAS, Lieut.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, on Friday directed the Theatre Commander of the counter-terrorism onslaught in the North-East codenamed ‘Operation Lafiya Dole’, Maj.-Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, to capture the self-styled leader of Boko Haram, Abubakar Shekau.
According to a statement issued by the Director of Army Public Relations, Brig.-Gen. Sani Usman, the Theatre Commander was given a 40-day deadline by the Army Chief to capture Shekau either dead or alive.
Attahiru “is to employ all arsenal at the  disposal of the Theatre Command to smoke out Shekau wherever he is hiding in Nigeria”.
The statement however called on the general public to also assist and volunteer information that would lead to the apprehension of Shekau.
The Boko Haram leader had severally been said to be either killed or injured during his sect’s battle with the Nigerian military but he always resurfaces in a video, debunking the claim that he was killed.
Towards the end of last month, he had posted a 17-minute video clip online, showing female police officers who were kidnapped by Boko Haram members in Borno state.
Shekau, in the video, lampooned the Nigerian military for saying that Boko Haram has been defeated, insisting that the abducted women have become slaves of the sect.
