- Troops launch blistering attacks
- 200 ISWAP fighters killed in clash with Boko Haram
Newly inaugurated Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke, swung into action at the weekend.
In a coordinated intelligence-driven action, scores of Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists were bombed out of existence as they gathered for another dastardly act.
The strikes, which also destroyed the enemy’s cache of arms, took place around the Lake Chad area of Borno State – the epicentre of the Boko Haram terrorists.
In two other strikes by the Air Force, hideouts of terrorists gathering in Katsina and Kwara were wiped out.
NAF’s spokesperson, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, gave an account of how the Air Force took the battle to the terrorists on Sunday.
He said: “Air assets conducted precision strikes southeast of Shuwaram before shifting to Mallam Fatori, where ISWAP elements were observed mobilising with motorcycles and boats along the Lake Chad Basin.
“The strikes destroyed insurgent hideouts, logistics hubs, and weapons storage facilities, eliminating several terrorists and crippling their mobility capabilities.
“Post-strike assessments confirmed multiple neutralisations and a significant degradation of ISWAP’s operational networks in the area.”
The statement added that while airstrikes were ongoing in the Northeast, another NAF fighter jet carried out precision air interdiction missions over Garin Dandi and Chigogo in Kwara State, striking bandit camps with “devastating accuracy.”
According to the statement, the attacks based on credible intelligence left the bandits suffering heavy losses.
In a similar operation, air assets under Operation FANSAN YAMMA struck Zango Hill, which harbours a terrorist kingpin and his fighters in the Kankara Local Government Area of Katsina State.
Some of the terrorists were killed and their logistics hubs destroyed.
The statement described the strike as one of the most decisive against bandits in the Northwest in recent times.
It added that in a bid to demonstrate sustained reach and precision, the Air Component of Operation FANSAN YAMMA, under Sector 1, conducted an Armed Reconnaissance mission across the Northwest corridor, covering key settlements in Zamfara, Kebbi, and Kaduna States.
It said settlements like Kakihum, Dankolo, Kotonkoro, and Kuyello served as routes and hideouts for armed groups along the Birnin Gwari–Funtua axis.
“During the mission, coordination with Forward Operating Bases at Dankolo and Kotonkoro revealed suspicious movement near Wam Hill, where terrorists on motorcycles were spotted attempting to flee.
“The aircrew swiftly engaged and neutralised the targets, with no further hostile activity observed,” it said.
NAF attributed the success of the operations across Borno, Kwara, and Katsina states, as well as the entire Northwest, to the directives of the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke.
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“Each mission reaffirms NAF’s resolve to project smarter and intelligence-driven airpower to project purposeful lethality against insurgents and criminals while protecting the lives and properties of citizens towards enhancing national security,” the statement said.
Tasks before commissions
Yesterday, the Federal Government gave the six development commissions a new task: they must henceforth work with the federal and state governments on security.
Minister of Regional Development Abubakar Momoh described the security role as one of the core mandates of the commissions.
“The commissions will work side by side with state governments to address insecurity in their regions. It is part of their core mandate.
“They are not the chief executives of the states, but they will complement the work of other levels of government.”
Momoh spoke with reporters at the Presidential Villa after leading some of the commissions’ chiefs to a meeting with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The minister said although the development commissions do not serve as the primary authorities in their various regions, they have been mandated to support both the federal and state governments in addressing the rising security challenges in the country.
He cited recent proactive interventions by state governments on federal highways, including repairs of the Benin–Warri Road in Delta State and work along the Sapele–Ogorode corridor in Edo State, as examples of the type of collaboration the Federal Government aims to strengthen.
Governors laud security overhaul
In Minna, the Niger State capital, the Progressive Governors Forum (PGF) commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for bolstering and revamping the nation’s security framework.
“We commend the President for strengthening the security architecture in Nigeria, his commitment to infrastructure renewal, and his focus on human capacity building,” the PGF said yesterday.
The forum’s Chairman, Hope Uzodimma, led some members on a sympathy visit to the Niger Governor, Mohammed Umar Bago, whose state was recently hit by floods, tanker explosions and boat accidents.
Governors Babajide Sanwo-Olu(Lagos), Biodun Oyebanji(Ekiti), Ahmed Ododo (Kogi), Sheriff Oberevwori(Delta) and Francis Nwifuru(Ebonyi), as well as deputy governors of Kebbi, Jigawa and Sokoto states, were on the entourage.
Uzodimma urged sub-national governments to mirror federal efforts and partner with the Tinubu administration to deliver democracy dividends and better governance to the people.
The PGF Chairman, who emphasised the forum’s “one for all” ethos, described the Niger ’tragedies’ as a collective wound for all progressives.
Uzodimma called on governments at all levels to put in place preventive measures to avoid reoccurrences.
“We are not unaware that some of the incidents are avoidable, but we have seen it as a call for the government and well-wishers to put in place preventive measures, measures that will not enable repeat occurrences of the tragedies that have happened. We feel touched and we condole with the governor,” he said.
Governor Bago thanked the forum for the visit and acknowledged federal and state aid.
“Niger State has suffered a lot from insecurity, natural disasters, and crises, but we’ve received support from everyone,” Bago said.
200 ISWAP fighters killed
Fierce fighting between Boko Haram and rival militants from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) broke out on Sunday in Dogon Chiku, near the shores of Lake Chad, as the two extremist groups continue to battle for territorial control.
At least 200 ISWAP fighters were reportedly killed in the clashes, according to Babakura Kolo, a member of a civilian militia assisting the Nigerian military.
A former Boko Haram member, who now monitors jihadist activities, confirmed the toll and said several ISWAP weapons were seized. Boko Haram lost four fighters in the encounter.
“This could be the worst clash between the two groups since they began attacking each other,” said Saddiku, the former militant.
Video clips seen showed dead bodies in canoes filled with bloodied water. An intelligence source estimated that “more than 150” were killed.
Boko Haram and ISWAP have been locked in a violent power struggle since their 2016 split.
