Halima Sule, Abuja
A major relief is in sight soon for concerned Nigerians as the military, from April to June this year, wiped out 2, 245 Boko Haram terrorists capturing 3,682 others and rescuing no fewer than 1, 993 victims of kidnap thereby boosting counter-terrorism operations to rid the nation of insecurity, general criminality and threats to national unity and peace.
Director Defence Media Operations at the Defence Headquarters (DHQ), Major General Edward Buba stated this on Thursday in Abuja during a quarterly media briefing on military activities, successes and milestones recorded in the various theaters of operations across all the six geo-political zones of the country.
He added that within the period, gallant recovered 2,783 weapons and 64,647 ammunitions thereby reducing the menace of arms and light weapons in the hands of dangerous and unauthorized persons in the country.
A breakdown of the recovered arms and ammunition revealed seizures of 1,169 AK47 rifles, 36,273 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 14,764 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 713 assorted arms and 9,850 assorted ammunitions.
Major General Edward Buba who restated the willingness and readiness of the Nigerian military to tackle shades of economic sabotage in the country especially robbery of crude in the oil-rich Niger Delta region disclosed that troops denied the hoodlums a theft of over N10, 533,131, 470.00 worth of oil within the period under review.
Stolen items recovered were 9,225,149 litres of stolen crude, 2,874,916 litres of illegally refined AGO, 29,900 litres of DPK and 31,380 litres of PMS, among others.
“In the course of operations, troops of across Joint Task Force Operations neutralized 2,245 combatants, arrested 3,682 terrorist/violent extremists and rescued 1,993 kidnapped hostages”, he said.
Major General Edward Buba maintained that the military had significantly degraded the terrorists notwithstanding events in the respective theatres of operation.
“It would take time and effort to completely destroy these terrorists, particularly as counter insurgency is akin to a marathon not a sprint”, noting “in order to make adjustments in our actions, thereby amending our operations to increasingly ensure we minimize civilian casualties. Our operations are progressing according to plan even as we abide by international laws governing armed conflict”.
“Overall, we will do everything within the bounds of the law to make our nation safe for citizens. The military will keep up with the fighting spirit and maintain the stamina in the front lines. Our pride is to risk our lives, to save the lives of our citizens. This is what we do to secure our country”, he added.
He contended that although troops in such operational theatres such as OPERATION WHIRL STROKE in the North-central region faced key threats, including banditry by various militia groups, farmers and herders clashes between herder militias and indigenes, kidnapping for ransom by suspected herder militia, gunrunning activities by suspected indigenes of Benue, Nasarawa and Taraba States, troops’ onslaught had largely degraded the potency of bandit groups, even though they appeared to be present in the area.
He added that troops aided by sister agencies have continued to optimize operations against terrorist and their cohorts based on its
informed anticipation of communal clashes that come with the rainy season due to increased encroachment on farmlands.
According to Major General Edward Buba, troops of OPERATION HADARIN DAJI, within the quarter, witnessed major security threats such as kidnap for ransom, attack on remote communities and communal clashes, but they sustained offensive operations to destroy and disrupt terrorists across the Northwest region.
Notably, troops’ activities instigated a rival clash among the terrorist groups that triggered a battle for supremacy leading to the death of several terrorist commanders. He emphasized that the synergy and the bonding element among the security agencies and intelligence agencies had greatly played immense roles optimizing operational exploits against terrorists in the zone.
The activities of troops in other theatres, such as OPERATION WHIRL STROKE in the North Central, WHIRL PUNCH in the North West, DELTA SAFE in the South South and UDO KA in the Southeastern regions of the country recorded amazing successes leading to the elimination and arrest of several violent extremists, and the rescue of several kidnap victims.
Of unique significance was the arrest of Monday Oluchi Ogwu at B44 Camp by troops of OPERATION UDO KA. During a search of the camp, several corpses in shallow graves were exhumed within the camp vicinity.
The troops also arrested a high profile member of IPOB/ESN in the person of one Mr Onwuha Onyebuchi at Agwu LGA of Enugu State. According to the Defence Media chief, Onyebuchi and several others are assisting ongoing investigation.
Extolling the gallantry of the troops, he restated that the resolve of the armed forces was very clear and unmistakable, saying that the driving force behind destroying the terrorists and dismantle their military capabilities was to make Nigerian citizens safe and secure, adding that troops are actively fighting in different forms while retaining operational flexibility necessary to make them respond decisively to different events and to project forces according to strategic needs.
“It is safe to say that the terrorists have prioritized their military capability over everything else. This is because as our forces advance and clear areas in which these terrorist hibernate, we continue to recover weapons, explosives and IEDs which are indicative of the priorities of the terrorists. Nevertheless, we continue to wipe out the terrorists through synchronised ground and air operations”, he said.
