The Nigerian Air Force says the Air Task Force (ATF) for Operation Diran Mikiya, has successfully executed air strikes that destroyed more bandit camps in Daji Bawar and Sunke Villages in Zamfara State.
Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday in Abuja.
“The strikes were planned on the heels of intelligence reports indicating that some bandits who had survived the intensive air assaults on their various hideouts at Shinkafi, Galadi, Ajia, Shamashalle and other areas of Zamfara State had relocated to Anka Local Government Area (LGA) of the State.
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“Accordingly, the ATF embarked on intensive Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions to confirm the exact location of the new camps.
“Eventually, the criminal elements were observed to have pitched their tents at Daji Bawar and Sunke Villages.
“The ATF, therefore, launched coordinated air strikes on the camps in the two villages with a force package of 2 attack helicopters.
“Overhead the target area, several bandits armed with automatic weapons were seen at both locations.
“They were engaged leading to the destruction of the camps and their means of transport while scores of them were killed,” he said.
He said that the troops of Sector 3 Operation Sharan Daji later confirmed that over 30 bandits were killed while many others were injured.
Daramola said that the ATF would continue to dominate the area through armed reconnaissance and air interdiction missions to completely decimate the bandits to ensure a return to normalcy in Zamfara and other states in the Northwest.
The spokesman advised all persons involved in armed banditry in the area to renounce violence, surrender to security agencies and hand over their weapons.
