The armed forces of Nigeria have restated their commitment to end terrorism and insurgency that have been bedevilling the country over a decade now.
Director Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba disclosed this on Thursday at the New Conference Room of the Defence Headquarters in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.
According to Gen Buba, the military has resolved to ensure that citizens of the country are safe by destroying the terrorists and dismantle their military capabilities.
He noted that the military has greatly degraded the terrorists, even though they are still present in the theatres of operation. He, however, said it would take time and effort to completely destroy the terrorists as counter insurgency is akin to a marathon not a sprint
“The resolve of the armed forces is very clear and it is to destroy the terrorist and dismantle their military capabilities in order for citizens to be safe. Accordingly, troops are actively fighting in different forms and retain operational flexibility which gives us the ability to respond to different events and to project forces according to strategic needs.
“It is safe to say that the terrorists have prioritised their military capability over everything else. This is because as our forces advance and clear areas in which these terrorists 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,” Gen Buba stated.
While giving a breakdown of the successes that the armed forces recorded in the second quarter of 2024, Gen Buba said that troops killed no fewer than 2,245 terrorists and arrested 3,682 suspected terrorists.
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“During the second quarter of this year, troops neutralized 2,245 terrorists, arrested 3,682 suspected terrorists and other criminal elements as well as rescued 1,993 kidnapped hostages. Furthermore, troops recovered 2,783 weapons, 64,547 ammunitions and denied the oil theft of an estimated sum over N10 bn (N10,533,131,470.00) only.
“Breakdown for the period includes and is not limited to the following: 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 ammo. Others are 9,225,149 litres of stolen crude oil, 2,874,916 litres of illegally refined AGO, 29,900 litres of DPK and 31,380 litres of PMS among other items,” the Media Director said.
He added that troops operations are continually assessed in order to make adjustments in their actions, thereby amending operations to increasingly ensure that civilian casualties are minimised.
“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 frontlines. Our pride is to risk our lives, to save the lives of our citizens. This is what we do to secure our country,” he concluded.
