The federal government is to reunite another batch of 606 former repented Boko Haram fighters with their families after undergoing rehabilitation.
The former terrorists are to be rehabilitated under the federal government’s operation safe corridor, The Nation reports.
Maj.-Gen. Bamidele Shafa, who is tasked with coordinating the programme made the disclosure at the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) in Abuja at a stakeholders’ meeting.
Shafa said some Nigerians who voluntarily laid down their arms in Niger Republic had been repatriated in February and were awaiting reintegration.
He said the Nigerians included 14 male adults, three female adults and eight children.
Shafa noted that the government established Operation Safe Corridor in 2015 to enable repentant Boko Haram fighters surrender and go through well-structured de-radicalisation and rehabilitation programme.
The senior army officer said that the programme upheld high standards as candidates who are believed not to have been sufficiently de-radicalised would be made to repeat the programme.
The chief of defence staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin, who chairs Operation Safe Corridor 2,000 low-profile Boko Haram terrorists/ISWAP members have laid down their arms since the establishment of Operation Safe Corridor.
He stated that 1,000 repentant terrorists have been processed by Operation Safe Corridor.
In another report, a bill in the Nigerian Senate seeks to clip the powers of the president to ensure security appointments is not concentrated in one region of the country.