By Luka Binniyat

KADUNA – The Supreme Council of Sharia in Nigeria, SCSN, yesterday, supported  the call by elders and leaders of Borno State that  the Federal Government should withdraw the Joint Military Task Force, JTF, from the state even as Boko Haram members were said to have intensified their campaign of violence in Maiduguri, injuring three soldiers in the process. Two bombs exploded in Gamboru and Bulunkutu areas of Maiduguri on Friday with no reported casualties.

It was alleged that members of the joint task force in turn started burning down houses on Dikwa and Budun road as they searched for the sect members in the area. Residents also alleged that some young men were killed in the process and that gunfights continued into the night.

Addressing a news conference at the end of its meeting at the Arewa House, Kaduna, President of the council, Dr. Ibrahim Datti Ahmad, alleged that the JTF was “using an unbalance force in its attempt to restore peace and order in Borno State.

“Innocent people are being killed. Women were being raped while property belonging to people were being plundered. We call on the JTF to operate within the ambit of the law. We also call on the Federal Government to respect the wishes of the elders and leaders of Borno State and withdraw the JTF in order to pave the way for genuine resolution of the problem.”

Meanwhile, the sect has denied the reported division in its ranks, saying it “remains one indivisible entity.”

The sect in a statement posted in its website entitled  ‘A call to service’ said “there is no split and there is no splinter group. Stories of split are tissues of lies by the state security service to discredit us. We call on all true faithful who believe in our cause to join us by enlisting as a follower and become a member of the brotherhood.”