The United States Institutes of Peace has advised Nigerian military to explore non-kinetic community-based approached to combat terrorism.

The Country Director of the Institute, Dr Chris Kwaja, stated this during an interview on Wednesday in Abuja.

Mr Kwaja lauded the Nigerian military over the recent successes against insurgency, banditry, secessionist movements, organised crimes and other forms of criminality.

He, however, said that the challenge of harming citizens in the process of combating insurgency called for concern.

“We applaud the military for the success made; but there is a real challenge to these responses which is simply about the harm against civilian population in the form of collateral damage. The direct military assaults, or air to ground attacks that are often described as “mistakes” calls for concern. While human errors might sometimes be understood under such situations, the frequency with which they occur raises questions about the extent of planning that goes into such efforts,” he said.

Mr Kwaja said that the call by the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Chris Musa, on the need for the military to protect, rather than harm civilians, was commendable.

He said there was also an urgent need for the armed forces to develop a comprehensive military strategy on “Civilian Harm Mitigation and Action Response Plan”.

This, he said, would capture issues around the duty and obligation of the military as they plan, command and control, rights of citizens and redress mechanisms among others.

He advised on the use of community-based intelligence, adding that the use of kinetic force to fight insurgency and organised crime was insufficient.

According to him, the military must work to regain the trust of communities because they need the support of communities to fight the war against insurgence.

He said, “Criminal groups rely on communities for hideouts, local support is very important for them, it serves as oxygen for their own survival. We are calling on government to invest in winning the hearts and minds of the citizens by ensuring public trust.’’

He called for the sustenance of unified efforts in the fight against insurgence, banditry and terrorist, adding that there was a need for the government to also address the National Bureau of Statistic 2024 crimes report.

(NAN)