NIGERIAN military chiefs are confident of finishing off Boko Haram soon after reports from Sambisa Forest indicate that the terrorists have run out of ammunition and are now fighting with crude weapons like bows and arrows. 

Over the last two months, the Nigerian Army stepped up its attacks on Boko Haram strongholds in Borno, Adamawa and Yobe States in conjunction with its Chadian, Cameroonian and Nigerien counterparts. This succeeded in pushing Boko Haram out of the 14 local governments it controlled at the beginning of the year, forcing it into its last enclave the Sambisa Forest. 

However, over the last few weeks, the military has stepped up air and ground attacks on the vast Sambisa Forest in Borno State, gaining more ground. According to the military authorities, one escapee from the attacks said that Boko Haram has now totally run out of arms and ammunition as its supply lines have been cut. 

Defence spokesman Major General Chris Olukolade confirmed that the attacks on Sambisa Forest are being stepped up in a bid to finish Boko Haram off before Nigeria's May 29 handover date. One escapee from Tabe village of Damboa Local Government Area who narrowly escaped from the area said the Boko Haram terrorists have run out of arms and ammunitions as the military intensified its attacks on Sambisa Forest. 

He added: “You can find more than 500 members of the insurgents with only few of them having rifles and even when one or two of them have rifles, it is like a stick, as they have run out of ammunitions because the usual supplies they get are not forthcoming. I am optimistic that the military will succeed by killing many members of the sect who have been terrorising residents in the past three years in the shores of Sambisa Forest." 

Another resident from nearby Yamtake village, added: “As a result of the recent aerial bombardment on the Sambisa Forest, many of the sect members including their commanders have fled into the nearby bushes of Yamtake, Tabe and Jangoro villages of Damboa Local Government Area of the state.” 

He called on the military authorities to come to their aid by mopping up the remnants of the insurgents who fled to these areas before they regroup to unleash terror on innocent villagers. According to the escapee, the Boko Haram terrorists have only bow and arrows, machetes, daggers and other local weapons. 

Meanwhile, one security source from Bama, one of the recaptured local government areas in Borno State said Boko Haram caused a lot of destruction in the town, as corpses were scattered all over the streets. He said only few structures still standing as the terrorists have virtually destroyed everything in Bama.