Nigerian military releases Daily Trust editor

The Nigerian Army Tuesday released the detained Maiduguri Bureau Chief of Daily Trust, Uthman Abubakar.

Abubakar, who has been in the Army’s custody since Sunday afternoon, was brought back to the Maiduguri office by an unnamed Major General who handed him over to a Security Officer at the office.

The release was announced by the Editor-in-Chief of Daily Trust, Mannir Dan-Ali.

Abubakar was brought back to the paper’s Maiduguri office and released without charge on Tuesday, the Daily Trust said in an article. The bureau was reopened a day earlier.

The regional editor said he was “courteously treated” but “his mobile phones and laptop were still with the military as the authorities said they needed time to finish the forensic checks being carried out on the equipment,” the paper said.

The Editor-in-Chief added that computers and laptops taken from the Abuja head office have similarly not been returned.

Personnel of the army had on Sunday invaded Daily Trust offices in Maiduguri, Abuja, and Lagos.

The troops arrested Abubakar and a reporter, Ibrahim Sawab. Although Sawab had earlier been released.

A source at the Daily Trust said the arrest of the journalist may be connected to the newspaper lead story on Sunday.

The army said Daily Trust was culpable of strengthening the Boko Haram insurgency group with its Sunday Trust lead story, where it disclosed information of the military as regards fight against the terrorists.

The army said, “The disclosure of classified security information amounts to a breach of national security and run contrary to Sections 1 and 2 of the Official Secrets Act.”

The government’s chief spokesman, Lai Mohammed, said on Tuesday that while authorities “are not about to gag the press,” the media “must exercise greater restraint” reporting on the northeast insurgency.

Some publications were “demoralizing the military and strengthening the insurgents,” he said, without providing details.