Nigerian troops foil terrorist incursion, rescue students, recover weapons

Troops have thwarted a planned terrorist attack on a military position in Borno State and safely evacuated 21 female students after receiving intelligence of an imminent assault, according to the military.

Operational reports obtained on Monday revealed that soldiers also arrested a suspected kidnapper believed to be part of a cross-border gang operating between Nigeria and Cameroon.

The report stated that personnel of the 3 Battalion stationed at the Forward Operating Base in Logomani detected suspected ISWAP and Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS) fighters attempting to surround the base. The movement of the insurgents was picked up through the facility’s CCTV surveillance system, enabling troops to respond swiftly.

The soldiers engaged the attackers, forcing them to retreat before they could launch the planned assault on the base.

In a separate operation, troops under Sector 3 acted on intelligence that seven suspected ISWAP/JAS members carrying improvised explosive devices had been spotted close to the Water Board Internally Displaced Persons camp in Monguno.

As a precaution, soldiers relocated 21 female students staying in the vicinity to the safety of Kinnasara Barracks.

“Three students who suffered seizures during the evacuation were stabilised at a hospital, while security around the area was reinforced,” the report said.

Elsewhere in Borno, troops of the 115 Task Force Battalion, working alongside local hunters, clashed with suspected terrorists at Surajo village in Askira Uba Local Government Area. The insurgents escaped, leaving behind three bicycles and two coolers.

The report further disclosed that troops of the 247 Reconnaissance Battalion, supported by local hunters, arrested a suspected kidnapper at Gaya in Adamawa State’s Mubi South Local Government Area.

During interrogation, the suspect reportedly admitted belonging to a kidnapping syndicate based in Cameroon’s Solere Forest, which allegedly crosses into Nigeria to carry out abductions before returning across the border.

Outside the North East, troops of Operation MESA, in collaboration with police officers and vigilantes, rescued a kidnap victim along the Koton Karfe-Okparake Road in Kogi State. Three suspected terrorists were also arrested during the operation.

“Troops recovered one Dane gun, one motorcycle, three mobile phones and ₦23,000 from the suspects.

“The rescued victim has been reunited with his family,” the report said.

In Kebbi State, troops of Operation FANSAN YAMMA also responded to terrorist activity along the Wasagu-Ayu Road in Wasagu Local Government Area. According to the report, the troops confronted the fleeing terrorists, who abandoned two motorcycles as they escaped.