The Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) denied report of recent attack on its troops killing 18 soldiers in its area of responsibility.
Spokesperson of the task force, Col. Timothy Antigha, said in a statement in Abuja that online media report on the purported attack claimed that 18 soldiers were killed when a faction of Boko Haram affiliated to Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) on a military.
According to Antigha, the reported attack and killing are falsehood being orchestrated by the media arm of ISWAP in its desperate attempt to revamp it parlous and deplorable image.
He said that the desperation followed several weeks of devastating operational losses the group suffered in the Lake Chad Area.
It has been widely reported and it is now common knowledge that sustained offensive actions by MNJTF troops and national forces have resulted in over 200 ISWAP personnel casualties and defections as well as numerous equipment seizures and destruction.
The claim of killing 18 MNJTF personnel in an unnamed location is,therefore, very strange and false.
He then advise public to disregard the ISWAP falsehood in its entirety, and urged the media to remain vigilant in order to frustrate attempts by terrorists to spread falsehood and propaganda in a bid to disrupt public order, peace and civility.