Halima Sule, Abuja
The Nigerian military has arrested no fewer than 100 suspected killers of five service personnel and six civilians in strict compliance with President Bola Tinubu’s order to Defence Headquarters (DHQ) to fish out the assailants following May 30, 2024’s attack by the Indigenous People of Biafra and Eastern Security Network (IPOB/ESN) on military checkpoint at Obikabia Junction in Obingwa Local Government Area adjoining Aba in Abia State.
But some of the 100 arrested suspects not found culpable in the course of necessary interrogations have been released while the rest with reasonable proof of involvement are held to assist troops in further investigations which military authorities said had produced useful leads to fresh findings.
Director Defence Media Operations at the Defence Headquarters (DHQ), Major General Edward Buba who disclosed these on Thursday in Abuja during the regular bi-weekly media briefing on military activities and successes recorded in the various theaters of operations across all the six geo-political zones of the country expressed regrets that the military lost nine of its men in June alone as part of its supreme sacrifice to ensure the security and safety of Nigerians.
While Major General Edward Buba did not provide the precise number of suspects still in custody whom he said were assisting the military in their investigations, he maintained regretfully that nine soldiers were killed in June alone by non-state actors across the country.
He had told journalists at a briefing two weeks after the attack that several intelligence-based operations conducted by troops led to the discovery and destruction of several IPOB/ESN terrorists camps across the region notably Igboro Forest in Arochukwu LGA of Abia State among others.
“Several arrests were made from the raids with those found to be culpable still in detention. Surely, there is intelligence value to the raids and arrest that were made. Those in detention are assisting troops to locate other camps, sleeper cells and high profile individuals involved in the activities of the terrorists group.
”The armed forces understand that the terrorists exist for the sake of war, and therefore for the sake of peace they must be eliminated. Our war effort is therefore designed and crafted to defeat and destroy the terrorists as well as dismantle their terror infrastructure across the country.
“Momentum is crucial to our operations and it is the reason we take the fight to the enemy and allow them no respite. Accordingly, our operations are focused on our war efforts, our mobilization and air strikes to destroy the terrorists.
“Sequel to the killings of five personnel at the checkpoint in Abia, troops conducted several intelligence based operations that led to the discovery and destruction of several IPOB/ESN terrorists camps across the region such as at Igboro Forest in Arochukwu LGA of Abia State among others’’, he said.
According to him, troops neutralised 197 and arrested 310 persons, among other successes recorded, in the past one week.
“During the week under review, troops neutralised 197 and arrested 310 persons. Troops also arrested 22 perpetrators of oil theft and rescued 251 kidnapped hostages.
In the South South, troops denied the oil theft of the estimated sum of Seven Hundred and Sixty Five Million Six Hundred and Fifty Four Thousand One Hundred Naira (N765, 654,100.00) only, he said, adding
that troops also recovered 180 assorted weapons and 5,123 assorted ammunition, among others.
”Furthermore, troops recovered 180 assorted weapons and 5,123 assorted ammunition with the breakdown as follows: 2 PKT guns, one fabricated Arty gun, one G3 rifle, 73 AK47 rifles, 17 locally fabricated gun, 21 dane guns, 2 pump action guns, 2 revolver rifles, one short dane gun, 3 double barrel guns, 3 single barrel guns, one pistol, 4 locally fabricated pistols, 5 fabricated baretta pistols, one berretta pistol, one jojef magnum pump action gun, one Exp 64 semi auto rifle, 10 hand grenades, 3 60mm mortar bombs, bandoliers and 10 fabricated Arty bombs.
“Others are: 3,207 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 1,022 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 13 rounds of 9mm ammo, 243 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm, 240 rounds of 7.62 x 51mm, 132 rounds of 5.56 x 54mm ammo, 143 live cartridges, 59 magazines, one pistol magazine, one ECOME HH radio, 4 baofeng radios, 4 vehicles, 47 motorcycles, 21 mobile phones and the sum of N1,236,200.00 as well as CFA 608,000.00 only amongst other items.
“Troops in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed 29 dugout pits, 22 boats and 26 storage tanks. Other items recovered include 66 cooking ovens, 85 drums, 8 vehicles, 3 mobile phones and 43 illegal refining sites. Troops recovered 728,360 litres of stolen crude oil, 143,450 litres of illegally refined AGO, 1,100 litres of DPK
and 18,750 litres of PMS.”
Major General Edward Buba seized opportunity of the briefing to comment on allegations made recently by Zamfara State Governor Dauda Lawal that efforts of the state government to tackle banditry, kidnapping and sundry security issues were severely hampered by an alleged political interference from higher quarters over security issues in the state.
‘’The attention of the Defence Headquarters has been drawn to weighty allegations leveled against the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN) by the Zamfara State Governor in a recent interview on Channels TV. The AFN hereby makes it unequivocally clear that, it is a professional force that is subservient to political authority, particularly the political leadership of Zamfara State.
“The military will not join issues with the Governor, rather we choose the part of cooperation over conflict with the state Governor and look forward to constructively engage with him on these matters,” he said, noting that the situation in Zamfara state, described by the governor as the epicenter of banditry in the country had claimed nine service personnel deployed in the month of June 2024 alone.
“Troops of Op HADARIN DAJI deployed to Zamfara State have lost 9 personnel so far in the month of June 2024. Those killed in action personnel are a painful testament of our tireless effort, commitment and sacrifice to restoring peace and security in the state.
“Nevertheless, the allegations against the military and security forces operating in the state really need to be analysed impartially and understood. The situation underscores the fact that, winning the war without the support of the people of the state is close to impossible.
“Interestingly, despite the state being described as the epicentre of kidnapping, the state has no internal security operation outfit to coordinate activities of security agencies operating in the state, as is found in other states. This situation leaves much to be desired,” he said.
But he gave the assurance that despite the challenges, the military would continue to work tirelessly to restore safety and security across the nation.
“Overall, the military will continue to work tirelessly to restore safety and security across our nation. Certainly, there is still a lot of fighting to do, in order to guarantee the safety of our homeland.
“Citizens must clearly understand the reason we are fighting this war. They must understand that the terrorist will not stop, until they are stopped,” Major General Buba maintained, noting that the lifeline of the terrorist groups is the people, and that winning the war without the support of the people is close to impossible.
“While troops probably don’t have all the answers, citizens should be rest assured that the military is working relentlessly to guarantee the safety and security of every citizen from acts of terror,” he added.
