Finally, the US government is hoping to sell up to 12 Super
Tucano attack aircraft to Nigeria to help in the fight against Islamist
militants Boko Haram, Reuters news agency reports.
An anonymous source within
the administration is quoted as saying that the US also wants to provide more
help with intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance. The sale of the
aircraft would need to be approved by the US Congress. The Super Tucano is
described by Reuters as a propeller-driven plane that can carry a range of
weapons and can be used for attack and surveillance. Nigeria’s army has retaken
a lot of territory in north-east Nigeria from Boko Haram in the last year. But
the fight against the militants continues. The seven-year insurgency, which has
mainly affected north-eastern Nigeria as well as its neighbours around Lake Chad,
has left some 17,000 people dead. Recall that the US had under the last
administration refused to sell arms to Nigeria, citing human rights abuse by
the Nigerian military as the reason, among other things.
