Okodili Ndidi, Abuja
The Air Component of Operation HADARIN DAJI (OPHD) of the Nigerian Air Force has killed 10 bandits operating in the forest near Birnin Gwari and Janko Hill in Kaduna State.
The operation, according to a statement by the Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, was conducted following a directive by the OPHD headquarters to resume kinetic operations against camps identified as harbouring unrepentant armed bandits.
The decision, he said, was taken in the wake of the attack on troops’ location at Sunke in Anka Local Government Area of Zamfara State, as well as the increased migration of bandits towards the Birnin Gwari area of Kaduna State.
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The statement said: “The attack on the armed bandits was undertaken when a Nigerian Air Force (NAF) helicopter on armed reconnaissance mission over the Birnin Gwari general area spotted armed bandits at the location and engaged them in a shootout, neutralising some of them. Some bandits were also tracked to Janko Hill and neutralised.
“The objective of the renewed kinetic operations is to ramp up the pressure on the bandits with a view to ensuring that the ongoing peace process is not scuttled. “Accordingly, the Air Component OPHD will continue to dominate the general area through armed reconnaissance missions to facilitate a return to normalcy in the Northwest. All persons involved in armed banditry in the area are, therefore, advised to renounce violence, surrender to security agencies and hand over their weapons.”
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