Nigeria jet missing since Friday op against Boko Haram
Iran Press TV
Sun Sep 14, 2014 10:29PM GMT
A Nigerian jet has been lost in an operation to battle Boko Haram's Takfiri militants in the country's volatile northeast.
The Nigerian Ministry of Defense said in a statement on Sunday that the Air Force Alpha jet went missing with two crew members aboard.
The German-manufactured jet left its base in Yola, the capital of Adamawa state, for a 75-minute routine mission, said Major General Chris Olukolade, the ministry's spokesman.
'Since then all efforts to establish contact with the aircraft have not yielded any positive result,' Olukolade added.
The Nigerian army uses its jets for daily bombardment of positions belonging to the Boko Haram militants.
Olukolade said efforts were underway to contact the two pilots.
In recent weeks, Boko Haram has gained ground in northeastern provinces of Adamawa, Borno, and Yobe.
Over the past four years, violence in the north of Africa's most populous country has claimed the lives of thousands of people.
Boko Haram has claimed responsibility for a number of deadly gun and bomb attacks in various parts of Nigeria since the beginning of its militancy in 2009. Over 10,000 people have so far been killed in the assaults.
Boko Haram -- whose name means "Western education is forbidden" -- says its goal is to overthrow the Nigerian government.
NT/MAM/AS
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