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The United States has decided to intervene in yet another country as President Barack Obama notified Congress that 300 troops and a fleet of surveillance drones were deployed in Cameroon to aid in the war against the Islamist extremist group Boko Haram.
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US to send 300 military personnel to Cameroon to aid fight against Boko Haram militants by doing surveillance & reconnaissance missions.
— Channel 4 News (@Channel4News)
October 14, 2015
After claiming the violence in the African region is intensifying, Obama said the military intervention began Oct. 12 with the initial deployment of 90 troops to Cameroon.
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According to Foreign Policy, it was not immediately clear when the other 210 troops would arrive in the African nation.
Obama told lawmakers the troops would be armed, but only for self-defense purposes, and assured they would not participate in ground combat. The president also said the drones wouldn't be equipped with missiles.
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In this case, according to Pentagon spokesperson Lt. Col. Michelle Baldanza, the Cameroonian government contacted their colleagues in Washington to request the assistance. Cameroon has been governed since 1982 by strongman Paul Biya.
Foreign Policy said Washington and Yaounde haven’t historically needed to collaborate, although contacts between both nations have steadily increased due to the U.S. involvement in the war against Boko Haram.
Baldanza said the drones will carry out surveillance flights to “better enable African partners to secure their borders against violent-illegal activities disrupting our common desire for stability in the region.”
The new 300 U.S. troops will reportedly be based in the port city of Garoua, Cameroon's capital of its northern region.
Washington is seeking ways to encourage Nigeria's neighbors to fight Boko Haram, who originally were confined to Nigeria. However, in the last 12 months the extremist group has increased their presence in neighboring countries, such as Cameroon, Chad and Niger.
.@statedeptspox: The United States strongly condemns Boko Haram’s brutal attacks this past weekend. http://t.co/iGc1mRJbY2
— Department of State (@StateDept)
October 13, 2015
In the meantime, Niger has imposed a 15-day state of emergency in the southeastern region of Diffa to allow authorities to beef up security, impose a curfew and restrict the movement of goods and people, according to a statement on state television. The government instituted similar measures in February.
A regional military alliance has failed to dismantle the extremists, who increased their strength and influence during the five-year government of former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan.
Boko Haram has drowned the region in violence, as their militants cold-bloodedly raid towns and communities, killing hundreds of people at a time, while also kidnapping girls and boys by the thousands. They are also known to use children as suicide bombers.
After two months in office and a campaign highlighted by the promise to completely dismantle Boko Haram, Nigeria's recently elected president, Muhammadu Buhari, has made little to no progress.
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