The Nigerian military, during various operations across the country in 2023, killed a total of 6,886 terrorists and other criminal elements.
Maj-Gen Buba Edward, Director, Defense Media Operations, said this in Abuja on Friday while addressing journalists on the actions of troops around the country in 2023.
He stated that the military’s actions last year resulted in the recovery of 100 million liters of stolen crude oil and 60 million liters of fuel.
Buba said, ‘’ During the period, troops neutralized 6,886 terrorists and other criminal elements. Troops arrested 6,970 suspects, rescued 4,488 kidnapped hostages, and recovered 3,320 assorted weapons and 39,075 assorted ammunition.
“Additionally, troops recovered 100,316,600 liters of crude oil, 60,339,426 liters of AGO, 3,465,450 liters of DPK, and 3,544,990 liters of PMS.”
The military spokesperson indicated that banditry, terrorism, abduction, oil theft, secessionist agitations, and farmer-herder confrontations were the main risks in 2023.
However, he stated that danger dynamics were characterized by geopolitical zones, with some penetrating over regional lines.
Kidnapping, armed robbery, communal confrontations, and livestock rustling, according to Buba, are frequent across the six geopolitical zones.
He said, “The predominant threat in the North-Central and North-West regions is armed banditry and terrorism, while the Boko Haram terrorists and Islamic State West African Province’s lingering insurgency remained the main threat in the North-East region.
“The major threat in the South-East and South-West was the secessionist agitations of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra and the Yoruba Nation, respectively.
“The South-South region continued to experience oil theft, cultism, and youth restiveness. However, acts of criminality such as kidnapping, armed robbery, communal clashes, and cattle rustling were common across the six geopolitical zones.”
According to military, the proliferation of small arms that entered the country as a result of porous borders, as well as local fabrication of arms, resulted in a spike in the crime rate in 2023.
“It is pertinent to point out that most security threats in the country were fuelled by the proliferation of small arms, exacerbated by the influx of illegal arms and ammunition through our porous borders and the preponderance of local arms fabrication factories in the country. Thus, the armed forces’ kinetic and non-kinetic efforts were geared towards tackling these threats in all the geopolitical zones,” he said.
On why the military could not oppose the onslaught on civilians in Plateau State, Buba explained that the Bokkos and Barkin Ladi areas of Plateau State comprised roughly 2,315 square kilometers with over 350 settlements, primarily dispersed.
“The distance between some of these villages and troops’ locations is over 90 kilometers and sometimes difficult to access because of the rugged terrain, which is mostly inaccessible to vehicles. Thus affecting the reaction time to incidents, except when there is credible intelligence before the attack.
“On the night of December 23, 2023, over 100 marauding armed militant herders suspected to be mercenaries carried out a series of unprovoked attacks from multiple fronts on Kambarpeli village in the Bokkos LGA of Plateau State while the locals were asleep. The militants unleashed mayhem on the villagers before the arrival of troops at the location.
“Similarly, on December 24, 2023, at about 1900 hrs, troops received a total of 36 distress calls from diverse locations simultaneously. The distress calls reported a series of coordinated attacks by armed militant herders on isolated villages in Bokkos and part of Barkin Ladi LGAs of Plateau State.
“Troops responded to the calls and were able to intervene in 19 villages, forcing the militants to withdraw. Unfortunately, the havoc had been committed before troops arrived at the other villages,” he noted.
In reaction to the letters informing citizens of a possible attack, the military spokesperson promised that such an occurrence would never happen in the state again.
The military spokesperson said, “Attacks on the Plateau will never repeat themselves. We have put modalities in place to ensure that whatever limited us the last time and did not allow us to get to some of these locations on time has been eliminated. The military is aware of the letters, and we are doing something. We are seriously going after those who perpetrated the crime.”
