Nigeria's military denies ceasefire with Boko Haram, vows more operations
The military said it had neutralized 435 militants and rescued 717 kidnap victims in September and October.
Nigeria's military has rejected claims of a truce with Boko Haram and other armed groups, saying it will keep fighting militants on Thursday, Turkey's state-run news agency Anadolu Agency reported.
The Defense Headquarters said troops are maintaining pressure on armed groups across the country, including kidnappers and other criminal networks.
Maj. Gen. Samaila Uba, the military's spokesman, told a news briefing in the capital, Abuja, that no ceasefire exists.
A press statement shared with Anadolu reported the military would keep targeting groups that threaten public safety, and that suspected criminals would face lawful military action or be brought to court.
The statement came after The New Humanitarian reported in September that the government had agreed a temporary truce with a faction of Boko Haram led by Ibrahim Bakura Doro.
That report, which cited three people with contacts among senior insurgent members, said the arrangement had been in place since June and followed talks that secured the release of 360 civilians abducted from the Ngoshe community in Borno State.
The report also alleged that the government paid the insurgents 5 billion naira (about $3.7 million), a claim the government denied.
Uba said troops carried out 588 security operations in September and October, which he said neutralized 435 terrorists and bandits, arrested 809 suspects and secured the surrender of 198 insurgents.
He said the military also rescued 717 kidnapped victims and recovered 5,666 weapons, rounds of ammunition, explosives and improvised explosive devices.
Uba added that the armed forces are tracking insurgents who have moved away from their traditional strongholds to stop them from setting up bases elsewhere in the country.
Nigeria has fought a Boko Haram insurgency since 2009, a conflict that has killed thousands of people, displaced millions and spread insecurity across the Lake Chad region, including Cameroon, Chad and Niger.
