Army chief charges troops to go after Boko Haram insurgents, others

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Farouk Yahaya, on Wednesday ordered troop commanders to attack identified hideouts of Boko Haram insurgents and other criminal elements in the Northern part of the country.

Yahaya, who gave directive during the closing ceremony of the Chief of Army Staff Combined Second and Third Quarters Conference 2021 in Abuja, told the commanders to be proactive in their operations.

He vowed that the insurgents and other criminals terrorizing innocent citizens in the country would be treated in the “language they understand.”

The army chief said: “In the past three days, we have generated new strategies that we believe could enhance stability in areas currently witnessing insecurity in the country and the Nigerian Army will end the year 2021 on a high and successful note.

“Henceforth, commanders must be proactive in the conduct of their operations. You must take the fight into the identified and known enclaves of terrorists and criminals to neutralise them.

In the conduct of our operations, commanders must ensure that their troops maintain a state of constant alertness and vigilance at all times to avoid any surprise attack by the adversary.

“Lackadaisical attitudes on the part of commanders would not be tolerated. The Nigerian Army, within the ambit of rule of law, will talk to the terrorists, bandits, kidnappers and other perpetrators of violence in the language they understand.

“I advise those fuelling the crises being witnessed across the country to desist from their unpatriotic acts as we remain committed to ensuring peace returns to every part of the country in no distant time.”

Troops repel insurgents, rescue victims from abduction

Troops of the Nigerian Army’s Operation Lafiya Dole On Wednesday repelled the Bokoharam and Islamic State for West Africa Province (ISWAP) insurgents in Borno State.

It was gathered that the terrorists had attacked commuters with about seven gun trucks around the Ari Gamboru and Gasarwa axis along Monguno.

A security official who spoke on condition of anonymity told newsmen that soldiers appeared at the scene following credible information they got about the attack.

The source said: “Apart from killing some of the terrorists, the troops captured five gun trucks and sophisticated weapons. Other fighters escaped in their two remaining vehicles.

“Some travellers including women and children who were at the verge of being abducted were rescued by the troops”.