22nd June, 2024
By Sumaila Ogbaje
The Nigerian military has given details on how its troops deployed for operations in different parts of the country had in the past week killed 220 terrorists, apprehended 395 others and rescued 202 kidnapped hostages.
The troops also recovered 432 assorted weapons and 9,004 assorted ammunition comprising three PKT guns, one G3 rifle, 83 AK47 rifles, 18 locally-fabricated guns, 16 Dane guns, 14 RPG bombs, one RPG launcher, two tear gas launchers, 234 smoke grenades and one bandolier in the course of their operations.
Other weapons recovered from the insurgents include 5,893 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 2,064 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 401 rounds of 9mm ammo, 200 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm, 154 rounds of 7.62 x 51mm, 195 live cartridges, and 17 magazines.
Giving details of the operations, Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Edward Buba, on Friday in Abuja said in the North-East the troops of Operation Hadin Kai neutralised 83 terrorists, arrested 98 suspects and rescued 61 kidnappers hostages.
He said the troops of recovered assorted arms.
In the North-Central, troops of Operations Safe Haven and Whirl Stroke neutralised 37 insurgents, arrested 102 violent extremists and rescued 113 kidnapped hostages, he said.
In the North-West, Buba said the troops of Operations Hadarin Daji and Whirl Punch, neutralised 78 terrorists, arrested 103 terrorists and rescued 68 kidnapped hostages.
Buba said the troops of Operation Delta Safe in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed 105 illegal refining sites with 51 dugout pits, 38 boats and 51 storage tanks.
He said the troops also recovered 215 cooking ovens, two speedboats, 44 drums, three tug boats, three barges, four wheelbarrows, one outboard engine, 15 vehicles, three motorcycles and six mobile phones.
According to him, troops recovered 1.09 million litres of stolen crude oil, 1.1 million litres of illegally refined AGO, 27,350 litres of DPK and 150 litres of PMS.
“Troops also arrested 55 perpetrators of oil theft and denied the oil thieves an estimated sum of N1.8 billion,” he said.
In the South-East, Buba said the troops of Operation UDO KA neutralised 22 terrorists, arrested 37 violent extremists, rescued 15 kidnapped hostages and also recovered a large cache of arms.
Meanwhile, Buba also revealed that operational adjustments have been made by the military to prioritise protection for farmers to ensure a successful rainy season farming.
He added that the armed forces had intensified intelligence collection effort targeted at hunting terrorists and striking them where they may be hiding and hibernating.
He said the aim was to eliminate the terrorists and the infrastructure that supports their activities.
According to him, troops will continue to employ significant firepower to neutralise terrorists and disrupt their activities across the country.
“Winning the war against the terrorist is non-negotiable,” he said.