Chad to join Cameroon to combat Boko Haram

Cameroon and Chad agreed Thursday to jointly wage war against Nigerian terrorist group Boko Haram but did not announce concrete measures.

Both countries said their militaries will work together to stop the sect’s bloody campaign that has killed more than 200 in the last week alone.

Presidents Paul Biya and Idriss Deby met in Yaounde less than a week after regional leader meeting in France pledged to wage a war against the Islamic group.

Cameroon and Chad share boundaries with northeastern Nigeria, from where Boko Haram has been operating since 2002.

The group has already struck in Cameroon several times and has demonstrated that it is able and willing to cause terror deep into the country.

“The terrorist activities of Boko Haram… remain a permanent threat to peace and security in Chad and Cameroon,” Biya said.

Biya called for a speedy implementation of measures agreed upon by regional leaders during their meeting in Paris last Saturday.

He said Cameroon was open to “coordinated patrols, intelligence sharing, exchange of information or border surveillance mechanism” with Chad.

A statement issued at the end of the meeting said the two leaders agreed on closer military cooperation along the border but gave no further details.

There is now a global mobilization against the group after it claimed the adaption of nearly 300 girls from a border school last month.

This week 80 US soldiers arrived in Chad to help find the girls, whose adoption has raised global awareness of the mayhem caused by the group.

On Thursday, the UN Security Council added Boko Haram to the list of al Qaeda-linked terrorist groups – a decision that comes with arms embargo and asset freezes.

Boko Haram is believed to be responsible for around 10,000 deaths between 2002 and 2013.