Troops of the Nigerian Army killed at least six suspected bandits in a clearance operation of their strongholds in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
Yahaya stated that firearms such as guns, rifle magazines, bandit uniforms, motorcycles, and rounds of ammunition were recovered during the operation, Chronicle NG reports.
The Acting Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, 1 Division, Musa Yahaya, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday.
The statement said, “Bandits and terrorists operating in the forest of Birnin Gwari today, November 16, 2023, suffer heavy casualties at the hands of troops of the 1st Division of the Nigerian Army and Operation Whirl Punch. Acting on credible intelligence, the highly motivated troops carried out an offensive clearance operation to the bandits’ strongholds in Sabon-Birni, Dogon Dawa, Saulawa, Maidaro-Ngede Allah, and Kidenda, all in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State, and made contact with the bandits.
“In the firefight that ensued when contact was made, troops neutralized six gunmen, recovered two AK-47 rifles, four AK-47 rifle magazines, 14 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, 40 pairs of bandits uniforms, and 9 motorcycles.”
He noted that the General Officer Commander had directed the troops to intensify their efforts to ensure all gunmen within their operation area were dealt with.
“The General Officer Commanding 1 Division Nigerian Army and Force Commander Operation Whirl Punch, Major General Valentine Okoro, has applauded the troops for their gallantry and charged them not to relent until all terrorists, gunmen, and other criminal elements in the Division’s Area of Responsibility are completely neutralized,” Yahaya concluded.
