The Defence
Headquarters says the death of 10 civilians in Gidan Bisa and Gidan Ruutuwa In
Silame Local Government Area of Sokoto State, was as a result of secondary
explosion and not direct military airstrikes.
The Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Edward
Buba, gave the clarification while briefing newsmen on Friday in Abuja.
Buba said the troops had on Dec. 25, in a coordinated joint
operation conducted between the Air Component and the Land Component of
Operation Fassan Yamma, to destroy Lakurawa terrorist groups in their hideouts
in the area.
He said that there was confirmed terrorist activities in the
area prior to the operation through sustained intelligence, surveillance
recognisance conducted for extended period of time to confirm the presence of
the terrorists hibernating there.
Pre-operational intelligence surveillance also confirmed
terrorist activities within the general area, he said.
“Thereafter, human intelligence were deployed and their
reports corroborated the intelligence surveillance and recognition findings,
emphasising the strategic importance of neutralising the location.
“After confirmation, aircraft were dispatched to conduct
precision air strikes on identified hideouts at about 0600 hours from that
date.
“The strike was executed with precision-guided munitions to
minimise collateral damage.
“The Land Component was tactically deployed at blocking
positions around the target location to prevent the escape of the Lakurawa
terrorist group, as well as to provide immediate post-strike assessment and
follow-up actions.
“Following the air strikes, ground forces confirmed that the
hideout was successfully neutralised with minimal damage observed in the
surrounding villages.
“The ground forces interacted with the locals in the area
and they confirmed the presence of the terrorists in that general area.
“The ground forces also confirmed that the air strikes
achieved its primary objective of neutralising the Lakurawa terrorist group’s
hideouts.”
Buba said that the neutralised Lakurawa terrorist combatants
were bombed and burnt beyond recognition because they were hit directly by the
strike.
He added that the military made sure it minimised civilian
casualties in the strike, noting that it was well aware of the presence of the
terrorists among the locals.
“In summary, I would say that troops targeted the terrorists
and not innocent citizens.
“Every innocent soul lost in the course of our operation is
a tragedy and we do sympathise with their loved ones and their families.
“But we must be reminded that our troops are very
professional in their actions and are indeed turning the tide against the
insurgents and terrorists,” he added.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com