Some three days after terrorists fatally ambushed soldiers from an elite Nigerian army unit in Abuja, the military reinforced and returned to the area of the attack to conduct a ‘clean-up patrol’.
By the end of the three-day exercise, at least 30 terrorists were killed, the defense headquarters said on Thursday.
PREMIUM TIMES reported on Friday night’s attack on the 7th Guards Battalion of the Nigerian Army Presidential Guards Brigade. At least eight soldiers, including two officers, were killed in the July 22 attack on the Nigerian capital’s Bwari Area Council.
However, on July 24, the military began its ‘clean-up operation’ in the local government using ground forces and attack aircraft.
“Troops from the 7th Guards Battalion and the 167th Special Forces Battalion along with the air component of Operation WHIRL PUNCH conducted a clearance patrol around the general area of Bwari between July 24-26, 2022,” Benard Onyeuko said. , major general and defense headquarters spokesman, said at a news conference on Thursday.
“The troops successfully clear the villages of Kawu and Ido. As a result, some 30 terrorists were neutralized and their enclave and hideout destroyed.”
Onyeuko, according to the text of the press conference, which was shared on the Facebook page of the defense headquarters, said that the military also recovered weapons from the terrorists.
“Ground troops also recovered 6 motorcycles, 2 AK47 rifles, 1 fully loaded LMG magazine, among others during the mob,” he said.
The attack
PREMIUM TIMES reported how troops from the guards brigade, in charge of the security of the Nigerian president, were ambushed.
Two officers (a lieutenant and a captain) and six soldiers were killed in the attack, while at least four others, including the commanding officer who is said to be a lieutenant colonel, were injured and taken to hospital.
While the Nigerian military and government were silent about the attack, the Kogi state government announced on Tuesday that the two officers killed were from the state.
On Thursday, the federal government finally confirmed the attack with National Security Adviser Babagana Monguno saying the soldiers “were ambushed and decimated” by the terrorists.
problematic TCF
Until recently, the FCT had enjoyed relative peace, compared to some surrounding states, such as Niger and Kaduna, where bandits operate almost daily.
The attack on the guard brigade occurred the same month that terrorists invaded Kuje prison in Abuja and freed hundreds of inmates, including Boko Haram suspects.
A few weeks earlier, terrorists also attacked a presidential convoy in Katsina, wounding one person.
It is not clear if all the attacks were carried out by the same group or by different ones.
Different terrorist groups operate in different parts of Nigeria despite the efforts of the military which has deployed soldiers in more than 30 of Nigeria’s 36 states.
ISWAP, a faction of the Boko Haram terror group, claimed responsibility for the Kuje prison attack and released a video of the incident.
However, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack on the presidential convoy and the guard brigade.