The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) at the weekend reinforced the Police, Army joint force in the battle to eliminate armed bandits in Zamfara State and other parts of northern Nigeria. NAF on Sunday disclosed that Air Force jets carried out effective air raid that successfully destroyed bandits’ hideouts in Northern Borno and Zamfara.
The spokesman of the Air Force, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, in a statement on Sunday, indicated that in Zamfara, the Air Task Force for Operation Diran Mikiya destroyed the armed bandits’ logistics base at Ajia and neutralized dozens of the bandits at Ajia and Wonaka in Birnin Magaji Local Government Area.
The statement indicated that the operation was carried out after intelligence reports indicating that the armed bandits were using a compound within Ajia as a logistics store to support their operations.
Escaping bandits who fled Ajia to Wonaka after the operation was further tracked and taken out by follow-up strikes.
In Northern Borno, ISWAP terrorists were neutralized in Tumbun Alpha, one of the islands on the Lake Chad.
A declassified battle damage assessment video of the attack shows the bombs from the jet striking the gathering of the terrorists and setting the environment ablaze.
The Air Force said that it is intensifying its operations in conjunction with other security agencies to counter terrorism in the region.
Earlier on Sunday, the Acting inspector General of Police, Abubakar Mohammed Adamu, had revealed that the Nigeria Police in collaboration with the Nigerian Military and other Security Services have commenced “Operation PUFF- ADDER” which is a full scale security offensive against the bandits.
It is becoming apparent that northern Nigeria is under siege.