The rains are here and farmers in northern Nigeria are preparing for the planting season, but insecurity has been a source of concern.
Now, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) is giving an assurance that they will be safe.
It says it has adjusted its operational priorities to ensure the protection of farmers during the rainy season.
According to the Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba, the military has made significant progress in its operations, neutralising 220 terrorists, arresting 395 others, and rescuing 202 hostages in the past week.
He said: “Our operational adjustments have been made to prioritise protection for farmers to ensure a successful rainy season farming”.
Arrested Suspects
Major General Buba said troops also arrested 55 suspected oil thieves and recovered stolen products worth ₦1, 860,151,700.00 within the period.
He further disclosed that 432 assorted weapons and 9,004 assorted ammunition were recovered by the gallant troops in the period under review.
He gave a breakdown of recovered items to include three PKT guns, one G3 rifle, 83 AK47 rifles, 18 locally fabricated gun, 16 Dane guns and two pump action guns.
Discovered Items By The Military
Also recovered, two double barrel guns, two single barrel guns, eight locally fabricated pistols, two revolver rifles, one hand grenades, 14 RPG bombs, one RPG launcher, two tear gas launchers, 234 smoke grenades and one bandolier.
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Other weapons recovered include 5,893 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 2,064 rounds of 7.62mm NATO.
Furthermore, troops seized 401 rounds of 9mm ammo, 200 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm, 154 rounds of 7.62 x 51mm, 195 live cartridges and 17 magazines.
Also, three baofeng radios, eight vehicles, 32 motorcycles, 59 mobile phones and the sum of ₦813,550.00 only amongst other items.
Items Discovered In Delta
Meanwhile, in the Niger Delta area, he said troops discovered and destroyed 51 dugout pits, 38 boats and 51 storage tanks.
Gen Buba added that troops also recovered 1,099,860 litres of stolen crude oil, 1,101,700 litres of illegally refined AGO, 27350 litres of DPK and 150 litres of PMS.
He assured farmers that troops would continue to employ significant firepower to neutralise terrorists and disrupt their activities across the country, assuring that, “Winning the war against the terrorist is non-negotiable”.
