The Nigerian Defence Headquarters has maintained that their troops will continue to sustained aggravated raids on criminal elements across the country.
DHQ noted that troops efforts to rid the nation of the menace of terrorists, kidnappers, bandits and other is paying-off as they succeeded in neutralizing 18 terrorists, 183 arrested, rescued 109 kidnap victims and destroy crude oil worth N1, 127, 229, 890.00 in the past two weeks.
Disclosing this to members of the press during the weekly press conference in Abuja on Thursday, Director Defence Media Operations at the Defence Headquarters (DHQ), Major General Edward Buba said the troops further prevented the theft of oil products valued at N876,451,800.00 and recovered the cash sum of N2,896,400.0.
Major General Buba maintained that the ongoing military operations of the Armed Forces of Nigeria reflected the drive and determination of the military high command cascading down to the collective resolve of service men and women sustain the current pressure on sworn enemies of the Nigerian State in five active theatres across the country namely, the North East, North West, North Central, South South and the South East.
He disclosed that military intelligence has detected plans hatched by yet-unnamed persons to target some critical infrastructure in the country, stressing that the development has been adequately tackled by relevant security agencies in the country.
Disclosing that the North East and North West had the highest levels of intensity of military operations with significant degree of success, Major General Edward Buba who conveyed the gratitude of the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa to Nigerians for supporting the military, noted that ongoing operations were complex with troops in difficult terrains fighting adversaries that adopt various forms.
“Clearly, we have boots on the ground and are fighting in several dimensions to crush the enemy. Indeed, troops are fighting on ground, air, at sea as well as in the cyber dimension in several parts of the country. The common denominator in all our operations is the terrorists.
“These terrorists are the enemy that must be fought and defeated. They are responsible for keeping the nation in an almost constant state of counter terrorism and counter insurgency.
“In the South South, troops denied the oil theft of the estimated sum of One Billion One Hundred and Twenty Seven Million Two Hundred and Twenty Nine Thousand Eight Hundred and Ninty Naira (N1,127,229,890.00) only.
He also disclosed that troops recovered 128 assorted weapons and 3,300 assorted ammunition, a breakdown is as follows: one PKT gun, 80 AK47 rifles, 15 locally fabricated gun, 15 dane guns, 2 FN rifles, 5 pump action guns, 2 single barrel guns, 4 locally fabricated pistols, one fabricated barretta pistol, one locally made double barrel gun, 2 hand grenades, 2 primed IEDs and materials.
Others are: 1,941 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 729 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 377 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm, 191 rounds of 5.55mm ammo, 199 rounds of 7.62 x 39mm ammo, 16 rounds of 9mm ammo, 26 live cartridges, 26 empty case of cartridges, 26 AK47 magazines, 6 baofeng radios, 10 vehicles, 4 motorcycles, 4 walkie-talkie, mobile phones and the sum of N102, 010.00 only amongst other items.
Troops in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed 18 dugout pits, 30 boats and 49 storage tanks. Other items recovered are 66 cooking ovens, 4 drums, 5 speedboats, 15 vehicles, 2 tricycles, one generator, 11 mobile phones and 57 illegal refining sites. The troops also recovered 1, l25, 440 litres of stolen crude oil, 213,539 litres of illegally refined AGO and 1,230 litres of PMS.
“Troops are confronted by a vicious enemy that are constantly trying to kill citizens or have killed citizens. Indeed, these terror groups are responsible perpetrating insecurity across the country and will not stop doing what they are doing, until they are stopped.
“We are aware of some of the plans to target some critical infrastructure in the country. Accordingly, we have emplaced measures to forestall such plans. Security agencies responsible for securing critical infrastructure and facilities have also been placed on alert. Accordingly, some of such plans have been frustrated.
“In this fight, citizens must understand that we must never compromise on security otherwise everyone’s security will be compromised. This is a situation that cannot be over emphasized for us to live in safety and security.
“Meanwhile, the military is doing what is needed at this time. We force the terrorist to pay a price for every act of aggression against citizens of this country. We recognise and have included this as part of our strategy to win the war. Overall, we have no choice but to fight for the safety and security of our citizens.
“We also fight to safeguard our nation and preserve our way of life as a people. For us a force, defence is the essence of what we do as armed forces. Accordingly, we would defeat the terrorists on the battlefield and help our nation flourish again’’, he said.
Comment:*
Nickname*
E-mail*
Website
