Troops Eliminate Over 1,400 Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists, Arrest 166 Informants in Northeast region, says Buratai

Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai, says that over 1,400 Boko Haram/Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists have been killed by troops of the Nigerian Armed Forces.

Arising from a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Monday, General Buratai said that this feat of killing the terrorists is one of the several successes recorded by the Nigerian military on its war against terrorism.

Buratai, who has been with the troops on the frontline, told journalists that he is happy with the morale and performance of the troops, insisting that the military is determined to rid all parts of the country of terrorism and banditry.

He said, “The troops are putting in their best and that has resulted in the tremendous successes we are recording. The fight is still ongoing and over 1,429 of this Boko Haram terrorists have been neutralised and we have arrested over 166 Boko Haram terrorists informants, their spies, couriers on logistics and their coordinators in the villages, the towns, and even the forest.

“The troops are putting in their best and that has resulted in the tremendous successes we are recording. The fight is still ongoing and over 1429 of this Boko Haram terrorists have been neutralised and we have arrested over 166 Boko Haram terrorists informants, their spies, couriers on logistics and their coordinators in the villages, the towns and even the forest.

“So, this is a tremendous achievement, our intelligence corps along with the Department of State Services and of course our good friends the civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) have worked very hard to see that this is achieved and I assure you that things will continue to improve as the days go by.”

Buratai, who said he was just arriving from the Theatre of War in the Northeast, informed that he was in the State House to personally brief the President on how it went while he was at the war front, adding that the President was pleased with the performance of the country’s military.

“I came in form the North-East just a day ago and it behoves on me to brief the President on what transpired there during the two months I stayed there. I have given him details of what the troops are doing and what we have achieved as well as what we intend to achieve in the nearest future.

“So far so good, even before I came, the President has been getting reports on what is happening in the North-East. So, with this brief that I gave him this morning, is further confirmation of what he has been receiving and so far, so good, he is impressed with the performance of the troops in the North-East and the effort put in so far has paid off.

“We will continue to deal with the situation, not only in the North-East but all other parts of the country. Tremendous success has been achieved and we are very happy with what is going on,” he said.

He said his presence in the Theatre of War had seriously boosted the morale of the troops in the trenches, which he said, still remained very high at the moment, adding that their loyalty and commitment was not in doubt.

“Surely you will agree with me that the troops’ morale is very high; it is something of trust, something of confidence, and something that will raise the spirit of any officer or soldier when he sees his Chief of Army Staff in the trenches a long with him.

“This has raised the morale of the troops and has also made them to put in their best and that is what has resulted in us doing so well and it’s still on going,” he said. “Surely military operations are carried out with plan and the overall plan is to rid the whole of the Northeast and other emerging threats that are coming up in other parts of the country especially the North-Central and some areas that hitherto have been quiet.

“We will continue to tackle any form of insecurity that is emerging in collaboration with all other security agencies and our colleagues in the Navy and the Airforce,” he said. He, however, praised the efforts and loyalty of officers and men of the Nigerian Army, adding that he would soon return to be with them.

“We have very loyal and courageous officers and soldiers. While in the battle field there, so I am very much impressed and happy with my officers and soldiers. This is to show the level of morale that they had while I was there and OI will continue to be with them, to raise their morale,” he said. By PRNigeria

Apart from the war against Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists in north east, Nigerian troops are also engaged in an ongoing operation to wipe out armed bandits and cattle rustlers who terrorizing parts of the North west and north central zones of the country. In a space of one week, troops have neutralized over 70 bandits during the operation.