US sends troops to fight Boko Haram
U.S. personnel began deploying on Monday under an arrangement with the Cameroon government, according to reports.
An administration official said on condition of anonymity that an advance force of 90 military personnel has arrived in Cameroon. A total of up to about 300 U.S. service members will be deployed.
The forces will be conducting airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations, the official said, adding they would be armed for their own protection. Obama notified House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, in a letter. The White House released the letter Wednesday.
The White House said yesterday that the troops will be armed to defend themselves, not to engage in combat and will stay in Cameroon until they are no longer needed. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the deployment is part of an effort to conduct airborne intelligence gathering in support of efforts to counter violent extremists in the region.
Cameroon has been battling Boko Haram militants. Early this week, two female suicide bombers suspected to be members of the militant group killed nine people near the town of Mora in Cameroon’s Far North region. At the weekend, five suicide bombers had killed dozens in a part of Chad that borders Nigeria.
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