Army authorities said on Thursday that no fewer than 154 Special Forces had completed their training at the Nigerian Army School of Infantry to tackle the menace of the violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram in the North-Eastern states of the country.

The breakdown shows that 96 soldiers graduated from the Special Warfare Course and 58 from the Counter Terrorism Course of the institution, bringing the total to 154.

Of the 154 of the Special Forces, 96 were drawn from the Nigerian Army and 58 from the Nigerian Air Force.

This, the Commandant of the Institution, Maj-Gen. Tukur Burutai, who spoke at the combined graduation of the Special Forces (Courses 49/13 and 34/13)at the Special Warfare Wing, Jaji Military Cantonment, Kaduna, noted made the training unique because it was “the first time the Nigerian Air Force and the Nigerian Army were undergoing a 16-week-training together in the school.”

Burutai said the training had equipped the participants to withstand any crack special forces in the country and anywhere in the world.

He charged them to put to test what they had learnt from the course so that “when the clarion call is made you will give a good account of yourselves.”

The Commandant who said he was satisfied with the performances of the graduates, however, reminded them of the relevance of the courses, noting that the courses were designed to tackle the current security challenges occasioned by the activities of Boko Haram in parts of the north.

The Commandant said, “I want to remind you of the relevance of these courses in the current global trends of terrorism and insurgency, which our country Nigeria is currently grasping with, especially in the North-Eastern areas of the country.

“These challenges and the need to safeguard our dear country’s sovereignty, citizenry and national resources, no doubt remains the foremost goals of our armed forces.

Read more: Nigerian Eye