The Boko Haram sect has claimed responsibility for bringing dowm the missing Jet of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF).
A jet deployed against the sect in Borno State evening lost contact with radar on Wednesday evening.
On Friday, Boko Haram released a video of the destroyed jet. The video showed the corpse of one of the dead pilots.
In the seven minutes, thirty seconds footage, Boko Haram fighters were seen moving along a dusty road, in gun trucks and on motor bikes.
The video showed that the aircraft exploded in the air before it crashed.
Towards the end of the footage, a masked insurgent climbed a wreckage of the aircraft and pointed his gun into the sky
“The Nigerian Air Force jet fighter with plate number 475 was sent to Sambisa to fight the Mujahideen”. The terrorists said.
“There’s no one that can fight God. This is the evidence of what God has done. There’s no way you will fight his people and this will not happen. The only way for you now is to repent. That’s the only way out,” he said in impeccable English.
The video was released on a Boko Haram social media channel showing a militant standing on what the group claims is the wreckage of the jet. It shows the Nigerian flag and number NAF 475 on its fuselage.
The air force said on Friday that the jet may have crashed. It said the cause of the crash and the whereabouts of the two crew onboard were unknown.
“Search and rescue efforts are still ongoing by NAF surveillance aircraft as well as NAF Special Forces and Nigerian Army troops on ground,” its statement said.
“At this point, the NAF is not ruling out anything regarding the incident. It however remains hopeful that the crew would soon be found and rescued.”
It did not respond immediately to a request for an update on the search.
In 2014, Boko Haram said it shot down another Nigerian air force jet and showed a video claiming to have beheaded its pilot.
