The Defence Headquarters has confirmed that the death of 10 civilians in Gidan Bisa and Gidan Ruutuwa in the Silame Local Government Area of Sokoto State was caused by secondary explosions rather than direct airstrikes by the air force.
Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Edward Buba, gave the clarification while briefing newsmen on Friday in Abuja.
Maj. Gen. Buba stated that on December 25, the troops carried out a coordinated joint action between the air component and the land component of action Fassan Yamma to destroy Lakurawa terrorist group in their hideouts in the area.
He stated that prior to the operation, there was confirmed terrorist activity in the area through persistent intelligence and surveillance reconnaissance done over an extended period of time to confirm the presence of terrorists hibernating there.
“Pre-operational intelligence surveillance verified terrorist activity in the general region. Thereafter, human intelligence were deployed and their reports corroborated the intelligence surveillance and recognition findings, emphasising the strategic importance of neutralising the location.
“After confirmation, aircraft were dispatched to conduct precision air strikes on identified hideouts at about 0600 hours from that date. The strike was executed with precision-guided munitions to minimise collateral damage.
“The land component was tactically deployed at blocking positions around the target location to prevent the escape of the Lakurawa terrorist group, as well as to provide immediate post-strike assessment and follow-up actions.
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“Following the air strikes, ground forces confirmed that the hideout was successfully neutralised with minimal damage observed in the surrounding villages.
“The ground forces interacted with the locals in the area and they confirmed the presence of the terrorists in that general area.
“The ground forces also confirmed that the air strikes achieved its primary objective of neutralising the Lakurawa terrorist group’s hideouts,” the defence spokesman said.
Maj. Gen. Buba said that the neutralised Lakurawa terrorists were bombed and burned beyond recognition because they were directly impacted by the strike.
He went on to say that the military made every effort to keep civilian losses to a minimum during the operation, despite being well aware of the terrorists’ presence among residents.
“In summary, I would say that troops targeted the terrorists and not innocent citizens. Every innocent soul lost in the course of our operation is a tragedy and we do sympathise with their loved ones and their families.
“But we must be reminded that our troops are very professional in their actions and are indeed turning the tide against the insurgents and terrorists,” he added.
