As part of efforts to secure Nigeria and its territorial sovereignty, the Military High Command says its troops have continued to sustain their onslaught on terrorists, criminals and kidnappers in the Country.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja, the Director Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba who noted that the troops are winning the war against insurgency explained that the Armed Forces in the period under review recorded substantial achievements across the six geopolitical zones of the country.
According to him, these operations spanned multiple zones, by addressing violent activities in the North East, North West and North Central zones, sundry crimes in the South West zone, and offensive actions against proscribed groups like the Indigenous People of Biafra/Eastern Security Network in the South East zone.
“The operations of the week in focus, resulted in 99 neutralised terrorists, while 198 of them were arrested. Troops also arrested 49 perpetrators of oil theft and rescued 139 kidnapped hostages.”
“Furthermore, troops recovered 141 assorted weapons and 1,463 assorted ammunition. The breakdown are as follows: one GPMG, one GT3 rifle, one assault rifle, 49 AK47 rifles, one josef magnum pump action gun, one double barrel gun, 2 single barrel guns, 9 locally made pistols, 13 dane guns, one hand grenade, 7 locally made rifles, 3 RPG chargers, 2 locally made hand grenades.
Others are: 347 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 966 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 25 rounds of 9mm ammo, 58 live cartridges, 50 rounds of empty cases of 7.62mm special ammo, 30 magazines, 27 vehicles, 47 mobile phones, 34 motorcycles and sum of N717,580.00 amongst other items.”
General Buba stated that troops of operation Delta safe in the South South while denying oil thieves crude oil products worth over a billion naira have successfully neutralised a large number of terrorists, dismantled their infrastructure, and are committed to eroding their military capability to ensure the safety of citizens.
He added that troops in the Niger Delta area successfully destroyed illegal refining sites, boats, storage tanks, vehicles, and recovered significant quantities of stolen crude oil and refined products.
The Director Defence Media Operations reassured Nigerians of the Armed Forces readiness, capability, and eagerness to continue securing the country by defeating terrorists, extremists, and insurgents.
General Buba while emphasizing the sacrifices made by the gallant men and women in uniform, urged the citizens to exhibit patriotism and offer encouragement in public discourse.
“It is for this reason that the Armed Forces is calling on Nigerians for support, particularly in the area of public opinion. We have to show support for our troops to win this war.
“The gallant men and women of the armed forces continue to put themselves in harms way to ensure the safety and security of citizens. We have to exhibit patriotism and encourage them.”
Legislative Vibes.