The Eyes and Ears

Terrorism is a war against the state and everything connected to it; state officials, citizens and their properties. What this means is that, in the fight against terror and insurgency, it requires collective efforts of both government (security forces) and masses. The masses in this regard, can contribute in terms of actionable local intelligence for security forces. They can also volunteer as civilian joint task force to complement the number of troops fighting terror. This also means that, the people are supposed to be the ‘eyes and ears’ of the security forces.

Nigeria’s decade-long war against Boko Haram has taken different twists and turns that calls for a synergy between troops and the locals. While the locals will provide local intelligence, the soldiers will act on it in combating terrorists. The recurrent terrorists\’ attacks indicate that there is lack of local intelligence for troops in the war against terror- from attacks on military bases to fatal ambushes by terrorists during military missions. Today, a colonel of the Nigerian army and three other soldiers were killed while on transit from Maiduguri to Damaturu after an ambush by Boko Haram insurgents.

Although there are reports that Nigerian troops were able to effectively engage the terrorists, local intelligence could help to prevent surprise attacks and ambushes by terrorists. For this to be possible, the Nigerian Army must set up mechanism for local intelligence. Collaborative efforts between the military and communities should be emphasized. In addition, troops should maintain professionalism while dealing with civilians in order not to dissuade them from gathering local intelligence. Effective counterinsurgency demands high-quality intelligence on the nature, strength, and strategy of the insurgents, including where and how they strike, etc.

Sophisticated communication gadgets should be utilized in transmitting information so that they can be vetted and acted upon. Nevertheless, a mechanism should be set to ensure that local intelligence generated are authenticated to avoid the troops walking into a trap or local informants being decoys of terrorists. Emphatically, the Nigerian troops cannot do this alone, they need the support of the people to collectively fight this war against terror.

For Further Reading, Click: Breaking the Stalemate
: Not Only for Soldiers