WorldStage Newsonline– Demonstrating its commitment to combating terrorism and insurgency across the country, the Defence Headquarters has reported that troops neutralized 156 terrorists and arrested 464 suspects within a week.
The Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba, stated that this achievement reflects the troops’ immense effort, determination, and sacrifice to deliver significant results.
At a media briefing on military operations across the country, Gen. Buba disclosed that troops also arrested 29 perpetrators of oil theft and rescued 181 kidnapped hostages.
He added that troops in the South-South region prevented oil theft worth an estimated sum of N623,447,390.00.
According to him, the troops are countering resurgent terror attacks in the Northwest and Northeast, which are fueled by the influx of foreign fighters from the Sahelian region.
“These foreign fighters are from the Sahelian region. Another contributing factor is the involvement of local collaborators who form a support base for these terrorists,” he explained.
“These collaborators act as informants, reporting troop movements to the terrorists. Despite these challenges, troops remain profoundly conscious of their role and responsibility in ending insurgency and terrorism in the nation.”
On weapons recovered from terrorists during operations, Gen. Buba detailed that troops seized 219 assorted weapons and 2,871 rounds of assorted ammunition.
“The breakdown is as follows: one GPMG, 68 AK-47 rifles, one AK-56 rifle, 12 fabricated rifles, four FN rifles, four Dane guns, seven pump-action guns, one foreign double-barrel gun, nine fabricated IEDs, 18 FN grenades, six RPG bombs, 27 magazines, four IEDs, and other materials.
“Other recovered items include 1,618 rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition, 676 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 16 rounds of 7.62 x 51mm ammunition, 68 rounds of 7.62 x 39mm ammunition, 317 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm ammunition, 73 rounds of 12.7mm ammunition, 175 rounds of PKT ammunition, one box of 12.7mm ammunition, 25 live cartridges, one Baofeng radio, 10 vehicles, 42 motorcycles, 29 mobile phones, among others.”
In the Niger Delta region, Gen. Buba noted that troops discovered and destroyed 48 crude oil cooking ovens, 10 dugout pits, 56 storage tanks, and 46 illegal refining sites. Troops also recovered 705,294 liters of stolen crude oil, 6,865 liters of illegally refined AGO, 1,500 liters of DPK, and 800 liters of PMS.
Other recovered items include 28 boats, eight pumping machines, six speedboats, three outboard engines, six drums, eight motorcycles, one mobile phone, and eight vehicles, among others.
He emphasized, “Overall, the military is acutely aware of its role and responsibility in ending insurgency and terrorism in the nation. Accordingly, troops are countering and eliminating forms of resurgent terror attacks in the Northwest and Northeast caused by the influx of foreign fighters from the Sahelian region.
“While troops may face occasional tactical setbacks, which are commonplace in any theater of war, our strategic objective of breaking the terrorists’ will to fight remains resolute and unhindered.”
The Defence Headquarters further urged citizens to view security as a collective responsibility and not solely the military’s task.
Gen. Buba stressed, “Citizens must not compromise on security because when security is compromised, everyone’s safety is at risk.”
