Nigerian fighter jets have carried out several airstrikes in the northeastern Sambisa Forest region, a known Boko Haram stronghold, according to a military spokesman. "The Nigerian military, in its resolution to incapacitate and further degrade the fighting spirit of the Boko Haram terrorist group, has carried out several bombings and airstrike missions in the Sambisa Forest," Air Force spokesman Dele Alonge said in a statement issued on Saturday night. Alonge said that the strikes – part of an army campaign aimed at eradicating Boko Haram – had severely degraded the group's fighting capabilities. "The airstrikes, carried out by F-7NI and Alpha Jet fighter aircraft and attack helicopters, have resulted in the degradation of the terrorists, capabilities and destruction of some of their strongholds," Alonge said. "Intelligence reports have revealed that, in the aftermath of the strike missions, the terrorists have been confined and their capabilities greatly reduced." The spokesman, however, did not say whether any militants had been killed in the operation, which follow recent pledges by President Muhammadu Buhari to end the insurgency within three months.
