Troops kill 212 terrorists, arrest 252 in two weeks
The Director Defence Media Operations, Maj Gen Edward Buba announced this during a briefing at the Defence Headquarters Abuja on Thursday March 28.
He said troops recovered 223 assorted weapons and 2,756 assorted ammunition.
The weapons, according to Buba, are three M56 rifles, 115 AK47 rifles, three PKT gun, 24 locally fabricated gun, 36 dane guns, seven locally fabricated pistols, one fabricated revolver pistol, three locally made single barrel guns, two hand grenades and one locally made explosive.
Buba said the ammunition and other items recovered are 1,716 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 494 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 60 rounds of 7.62 x 25mm ammo, 290 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm ammo, 81 rounds of 9mm ammo, 2 live cartridges, 16 magazines, 3 M56 rifles magazines, one HH radio, 5 vehicles, 14 motorcycles, 15 mobile phones and the sum of N857,960.00 amongst other items.
The defence spokesperson also said troops in the Niger Delta area recovered 944,700 litres of stolen crude oil, 171,060 litres of illegally refined diesel and 1,500 litres of kerosene.
He said: “The troops also discovered and destroyed 102 dugout pits, 41 boats, 36 storage tanks and 8 vehicles. Other items recovered incl 39 cooking ovens, 6 pumping machines and 61 illegal refining sites.”
Buba said the military was “bent on sustaining the winning ways of our operational engagements as demonstrated with the recent rescue of 16 and 137 hostages in Sokoto and Kaduna States, respectively.
“The rescue of these hostages is indicative of a better understanding of the dynamics of what we are dealing with, and to address the issue in a much safer manner,” he added.