By Kingsley Omonobi, Henry Umoru & Joseph Erunke

ABUJA —  THE Senate, yesterday, said that fleeing members of Boko Haram sect have infiltrated towns and villages in Taraba State, in the North Central geo-political zone of the country.

Consequently, the Senate called on the Federal Government to urgently call on security chiefs to deploy securitymen in Taraba State to stop the killings and flush the insurgents out of the state.

It also urged the Federal Government to undertake a holistic study of the crisis in Taraba State, rehabilitate the Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs, as well as supervise their re- integration into their communities.

This came on a day sustained air bombardments by Alpha jets fighter aircraft and helicopter gunship of Nigerian Air Foce forced Boko Haram terrorists  to abandon their camp at Iza, Borno State, and fled into Samba forest.

Relevant Senate committees were, however, mandated to visit the affected areas in the state and the IDPs camps to ascertain the gravity of activities of the insurgents and interface with the state government and security agencies towards finding a lasting solution to the activities of the insurgents.

Meanwhile, Deputy Senate Minority leader, Senator Emmanuel Bwacha, PDP, Taraba South disclosed, yesterday, that over 2,000 people had so far been killed by Fulani herdsmen in Taraba State since December 2013, adding that there was the need to halt insurgents re-assembling in Taraba as well as put a stop to what he described as ongoing silent genocide in the state.

These resolutions were sequel to a motion, etitled “The need to urgently flush out Boko Haram insurgents re-assembling in Taraba and halt the ongoing silent genocide in the state” and  sponsored by the Deputy Senate Minority leader, Senator Emmanuel Bwacha, PDP, Taraba South.

Fulani herdsmen are terrorists

Also yesterday, the Senate described as terrorists, the Fulani herdsmen that had been harassing Nigerians in some parts of the country.

But Senator Shehu Sani, APC, Kaduna Central, who rejected the motion, urged the Senate to condemn the description of Fulani herdsmen as terrorists by the nation’s security agencies. His prayer was seconded by Senator Ali Wakil, APC, Bauchi South.

Sani raised this through an additional prayer to the six prayers already contained in Senator Bwacha’s motion on the need to urgently flush out Boko Haram insurgents from Taraba State.

During the presentation of his motion, Senator Bwacha told his colleagues that the insurgents running away from the military were relocating to safe havens in his state.

 2000 killed in Taraba by herdsmen – Senator

Senator Bwacha said: “There is a change of tactics by these insurgents, who now parade as herdsmen to make it more difficult for the unsuspecting public to identify them. The Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Solomon Arase, recently confirmed that the herdsmen involved in most of the senseless killings are not the same Fulanis we know.

‘’They go about grazing with AK-47 rifles. The insurgents caught with over 300 cows in Borno State by the JTF lend credence to the assertion.

“These Boko Haram attackers, masquerading as Fulani herdsmen, have killed over 2,000 people from December 2013 to date in the state.

Meanwhile, sustained air bombardments by Alpha jets fighter aircraft of Nigerian Air Force forced Boko Haram terrorists to abandon their camp at Iza, Borno State, and fled into Samba Forest.