The Acting Director, Defence Media Operation,Brigadier General Benard Onyeuko said on Thursday that troops in various theatres of operation across the country are making steady progress resulting in a comparative decrease in criminal activities.
He stated this in Abuja while briefing on the Nigerian Armed Forces troops’ activities between June 3rd and 16th.
According to him, “troops of the Armed Forces of Nigeria and other security agencies have continued to tackle the security challenges, characterized by killings, maiming and destruction of properties by criminal elements across the Country.”
He said that within the period in focus, “troops sustained the onslaught against all forms of criminalities by conducting series of operations ranging from aggressive ground operations to comprehensive air operations and exclusive maritime operations against criminal elements and their enclaves.”
The operations highlighted in the brief are Operations HADIN KAI; HADARIN DAJI; SAFE HAVEN; WHIRL STROKE; DELTA SAFE; and AWATSE as well as non-kinetic approach in tackling the security challenges.
On the ongoing Operation HADIN KAI in the North East Zone of the Country where Boko Haram insurgency have been on in the last ten years, General Onyeuko said that troops conducted several raid operations and extensive air strikes. They also responded to distress calls as well as repelled and thwarted terrorists’ attacks.
The operations were conducted concurrently in different locations in the North East Zone of the Country and these include Damboa Town in Borno State where air strikes executed with NAF platforms on 3 June, dislodged several terrorists and inflicted significant damages on their logistics facilities.”
Troops also repelled terrorists’ attacks on Damboa Town in Borno State on same June 3rd, where several fighters of the ISWAP sect, including one of their commander named Umar Tela, were neutralized.
Other locations where troops recorded significant results were; Gujba Town in Gujba LGA of Yobe State, Magumeri Town in Borno State and Mubi Town in Mubi LGA of Adamawa State; where troops conducted raid operations on Boko Haram Terrorists (BHT) hideouts on June 4th and 5th 2021.
Brigadier General Onyeuko said that in the course of these operations within the period under review, several of terrorists were neutralized, while some escaped with gunshot wounds.
“Large number of their gun trucks and other logistics facilities were destroyed in the process. Troops operations also led to the arrest of some terrorists and kidnappers including the leader of a notorious kidnapping syndicate in the North East Zone, named Mohammed Maki, who is a Chadian.”
Troops also recovered large caches of arms and ammunition, large quantities of PMS and AGO in jerry cans in the course of the operations, he said, adding that the troops superior operational engagements have continued to degrade the terrorists’ operational capabilities and deny them freedom of operation in the North East theatre.
In other cases, some kidnapped victims were rescued and rustled cattle recovered; and economic saboteurs arrested.