The Nigerian military has renewed offensive against bandits in the Northwest, following a resurgence of violence and displacement.
Major General John Enenche, Coordinator Defence Media Operations in a statement said that “as part of the renewed offensive to rid the North West of the Country of armed bandits and other criminal elements, the Air Component of Operation HADARIN DAJI has decimated several camps and neutralized no fewer than 135 armed bandits in massive air raids executed at several locations in Katsina and Zamfara States between May 20 and May 22, 2020.
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Enenche added that the air strikes were undertaken sequel to credible Human Intelligence (HUMINT) reports as well as series of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions that led to the identification of the camps.
These include Abu Radde Camps 1 and 2 and Dunya in Jibia and DanMusa Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Katsina State as well as Hassan Tagwaye’s Camp; Alhaji Auta’s Camp and Maikomi in Birnin Magaji and Zurmi LGAs of Zamfara State.
He explained that the air interdiction missions were painstakingly undertaken by the Air Component as it dispatched its attack aircraft to the locations in multiple bombing runs, some of which were executed simultaneously.
At the Abu Radde Camps on May 20, a set of huts housing one of the notorious bandit leaders was taken out by air strikes with scores of the bandits killed and few seen fleeing with gunshot wounds towards the Dumburum Forest.
Similar air raids were executed at Hassan Tagwaye’s and Alhaji Auta’s Camps as well as at Maikomi with equally devastating effects.
