By AGATHA NWOKOCHA, Abuja
The ongoing military operations by Nigerian Armed Forces across Nigeria have recorded fresh successes in one week.
Disclosing the defeat of criminal elements, insurgents and terrorists across the country in the preceding week the Director of Defence Media Operations (DMO) Major General Edward Buba said troops are
combating a common enemy which are the terrorist and violent extremist groups.
The Director said, ” the military through its operations continues to prevail against the effects of insurgency and terrorism with an ultimate goal of securing the country against perpetrators of insecurity for national progress”.
In a press release on Friday, Buba stated that in the course of one week, the military neutralized 31 terrorists and arrested 81 of them. The spokesman said troops also arrested 11 perpetrators of oil theft, rescued 10 kidnapped hostages while a total of 63 BH/ISWAP terrorists and their families surrendered to troops across theaters of operation.
He further said, that troops denied oil theft of an estimate sum of Two Hundred and One Million Four Hundred and Two Thousand Two Hundred and Sixty Naira (N201,420,260.00).
According to Buba, troops recovered 65 assorted weapons and 391 assorted ammunition.
The breakdown shows as follows: 26 AK47 rifles, 4 locally made rifles, 6 dane guns, 2 locally made pistols, 7 magazines, body armour ammo among others. He went on to say others are: 345 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 19 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 7 rounds of 9mm ammo, 36 live cartridges, 10 rounds 7.62 x 39mm war heads, 48 motorcycles, 12 mobile phones and 43 and the sum of N327,960.00. “Troops in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed 7 dugout pits, 9 boats, 25 storage tanks, 39 cooking ovens, 3 pumping machines and 14 illegal refining sites. Troops recovered 367,300 litres of stolen crude oil, 11,353 litres of illegally refined AGO, 12,500 litres of DPK and 5,000 litres PMS”, Buba added.
Major General Buba assured that the ongoing military operations will continue to set the stage for social and economic progress.
“The ultimate goal is to secure the country through the defeat of those threatening safety of citizens and perpetrating insecurity across the country”, he stated.
