Troops kill 34 Boko Haram members, rescue 338

The Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Sani Usman, said the troops also recovered arms and ammunitions during the raid operation

Troops of 28 Task Force Brigade of the Nigerian Army deployed at Bitta and Pridang carried out a successful raid on suspected Boko Haram terrorists camps at Bulajilin and Manawashe villages along Bita and Damboa Road at the fringes of Sambisa forest on Tuesday.

The troops, according to a statement on Wednesday, were able to kill 30 Boko Haram terrorists.

The unit also rescued 338 persons that were held captive by the terrorists in the enclaves.

The rescued persons, made up of eight males, 138 females and 192 children, have since been evacuated to Mubi in Adamawa State.

The Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Sani Usman, said the troops also recovered arms and ammunitions during the raid operation.

Among weapons recovered were one General Purpose Machine Gun, two dane guns, 150 rounds of 7.62mm (NATO), six boxes of 7.62mm (NATO) and three cutlasses.

In a related development, the troops, based on a tip off, ambushed and killed four suspected Boko Haram terrorists on a suicide bombing mission to Gubula, Madagali Local Government Area of Adamawa State.

Apart from two AK-47 rifles recovered, the troops also recovered some Unexploded Ordinances, mortar bombs and cash sum of N153,385k was retrieved.

Usman added: “It is worthy to note that the raid operation on the Boko Haram Terrorists enclave coincided with the Chief of Army Staff’s operational visit to the Brigade Headquarters in Mubi.

“The successful clearance operations and  ambushing of the terrorists has further degraded them and saved the lives of so many innocent victims of their suicide bombings.

“Having appealed and given the terrorists final warning, we would like to state that from now on troops within bounds of respect for human rights and rules of engagement, we shall continue to decisively deal with Boko Haram terrorists until they are defeated.

“Therefore, we are appealing for continued vigilance, security consciousness and above all cooperation with the military and security agencies to enable us successfully defeat the terrorists.”

THE EAGLE ONLINE