'Announcement of terrorists' new leader irrelevant' - DHQ

dimeji akinloye

August 4, 2016 12:28 AM

The Director of Defence Information, Rabe Abubakar, said the military remains focused on its operation in the region.

The Defence Headquarters (DHQ), has played down the announcement of a new

The Director of Defence Information, DHQ, Brig.-Gen. Rabe Abubakar, said that the military remains focused on its operation in the region.

He said the announcement of a new leader for the group was only aimed at seeking attention and relevance.

"As far as we are concerned, what Boko Haram or their cohorts are doing is of no relevance to our operations against them," he told NAN in Abuja on Wednesday, August 3.

"We are just focused on clearing the remnants of the insurgents that are scattered around.

"What they are doing is to seek relevance and to tell the world that they are still around whereas they have been decimated.

"Their latest move is the antics of a fading group and I believe that in the shortest time they will be history.’’

It would be recalled a foreign media reported on Wednesday that ISIS had announced Abu Musab al-Barnawi as the new leader of Boko Haram after Abubakar Shekau’s exit.

Al-Barnawi was the spokesperson of the group under Shekau.

ALSO READ: "Beware of beggars at mosques," NSCDC warns

ISIS, the report said, did not say what happened to Shekau who has been out of the picture since 2015.

Boko Haram had earlier in 2015 pledged its allegiance to the Islamic State (ISIS) militant group.

dimeji akinloye