Location: Cameroon
Type: Military
Cameroon face increasing IED violence thanks to Boko Haram. To combat the is threat their CIED capabilities had to be improved.
As the United States were also concerned about Boko Haram they have provided training – as they have also done with Nigeria forces – to personnel from the Cameroon military. This training was given to the newly created Rapid Intervention Battalion (BIR), who specialise in CIED and EOD operations. They mostly operate in the Far North Province where Cameroon are most susceptible to attacks.
They have received training in detecting and destroying IEDs to avoid civilian casualties.
Much of the CIED work conducted by the Cameroon military involves manning checkpoints in order to prevent IEDs or IED materials crossing borders. [Though this can stop IEDs from passing across the border, preventing IEDs from being detonated in densely populated areas and therefore lessening civilian harm, it also means most of Boko Haram’s IEDs are detonated at checkpoints.
The military has also acquired Ratel armoured vehicles to be used in CIED operations as they can be fitted with a mine-roller and detection devices.
This profile is part of AOAV’s investigation into counter-IED (C-IED) actors around the globe. To see the list of all C-IED actors recorded by AOAV, see here. To see those engaged in the Middle East, the Sahel, North Africa or other highly impacted countries please see here, here, here, and here respectively. This research was made possible by funding from the NATO Counter Improvised Explosive Devices Centre of Excellence (C-IED COE). To read the full report, ‘Addressing the threat posed by IEDs: National, Regional and Global Initiatives’, see here.
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