By Ibrahim Shehu
The troops of Sector 2 Operation Fansan Yamma have neutralised armed terrorists, thwarted a kidnapping attempt and recovered arms and rustled livestock in Sokoto and Katsina States.
The Media Information Officer of the Joint Task Force (North West) Operation Fansan Yamma, Lt.-Col. Aliyu Danja, disclosed this in a statement on Monday in Sokoto.
According to him, the first of these decisive encounters occurred on June 21, when armed terrorists attempted to infiltrate Tureta town in Sokoto State.
Danja said that responding swiftly to actionable intelligence, the vigilant troops engaged the criminals, forcing them to abandon their sinister mission and flee.
“Following this initial encounter, aerial surveillance tracked the fleeing terrorists to Sulubawa Gidan Kare village, where they were observed moving with abducted civilians and rustled livestock.
“Acting promptly, the troops launched a hot pursuit. Despite encountering a hastily mounted ambush by the retreating terrorists, the troops displayed exceptional courage and superior firepower, fighting through the ambush and compelling the criminals to scatter,” he said.
He said that this effort by the troops led to the successful rescue of the abductees, the recovery of the rustled cattle and the seizure of two motorcycles used by the terrorists.
In a related development, he said that during the early hours of June 22, troops executed an intelligence-driven dawn raid on a known terrorist enclave in Matazu Local Government Area of Katsina State.
“During the ensuing firefight, 2 terrorists were neutralised, while several others fled the scene with varying degrees of gunshot wounds,” he said.
According to him, the operation has yielded significant recoveries of a PKT assault rifle, an AK 47 rifle with a quantity of ammunition, three motorcycles, mobile communication devices, rustled livestock, and other logistical items used to facilitate their criminal enterprises.
He assured the public that aggressive operations will be sustained to dismantle all terrorist networks, deny them freedom of action and restore lasting peace and security across the North West region. (www.nannews.ng)