Troops neutralize 156 terrorists, denied thieves N623m worth of crude oil
BY ANDREW OROLUA
Nigerian troops neutralised 156 terrorists, arrested 464 others and denied the oil theft of an estimated sum of N623,447,390.00 worth of crude oil this week , the Defence Headquarters has said.
Out going Director Defence Media Operations Major General Edward Buba who disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja said troops also arrested 29 perpetrators of oil theft and rescued 181 kidnapped hostages.
He said that in the encounters with terrorists within the week troops recovered 219 assorted weapons and 2,871 assorted ammunition.
With “the breakdown as follows: one GPMG, 68 AK47 rifles, one AK56 rifle, 12 fabricated rifles, 4 FN rifles, 4 dane guns, 7 pump action guns, one foreign double barrel gun, 9 fabricated IEDs, 18 FN grenades, 6 RPG bombs, 27 magazines, 4 IEDs and making materials.
“Others are: 1,618 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 676 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 16 rounds of 7.62 x 51mm ammo, 68 rounds of 7.62 x 39mm ammo, 317 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm ammo, 73 rounds of 12.7mm ammo, 175 rounds of PKT ammo, one box of 12.7mm ammo, 25 live cartridges, one baofeng radio, 10 vehicles, 42 motorcycles, 29 mobile phones amongst other items.
While “troops in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed 48 crude oil cooking ovens, 10 dugout pits, 56 storage tanks and 46 illegal refining sites. Troops also recovered 705,294 litres of stolen crude oil, 6,865 litres of illegally refined AGO, 1,500 litres of DPK and 800 litres of PMS.
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“Other items recovered include 28 boats,8 pumping machines and 6 speedboats. Additional are:3 outboard engines, 6 drums, 8 motorcycles, one mobile phone and 8 vehicles among others.
He said overall, the military is profoundly conscious of its role and responsibility in ending insurgency and terrorism in the nation and are accordingly thwarting and eliminating forms of resurgent terror attacks in the North West and North East Zones, caused by influx of foreign fighters from the Sahelian Region.
Major General Buba said though troops might record occasional tactical setbacks which is common place in any theatre of war. “Our strategic objective of breaking the terrorist will to fight remains resolute and unhindered.”
He assured the military is committed to winning the war against terrorists and insurgency across the country. This is demonstrated as troops are fighting with great effort, determination and sacrifice to bring about great results.
Major General Buba urged citizens to embrace security as every bodies business and not that of the military emphasising that citizens must not compromise on security, otherwise everyone’s security is compromised.
