New Telegraph

Southern Kaduna killings: Military deploys Special Forces

…vows to crush threats to security, public safety

The criminal activities of gunmen in Southern Kaduna may soon come to an end, as the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) has deployed Special Forces in the troubled area. This is coming on the heels of reported cases of killings in the axis, which have continued to provoke outrage within and outside the country, in the face of existing cleavages.

Addressing journalists yesterday at the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) in Abuja, on ongoing operations across the geo-political zones of the country, Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, Maj-Gen. John Enenche, assured of the readiness of the military to crush threats to national security, peace and public safety. “In a bid to curb the recent attacks and isolated killings in Southern Kaduna, troops of Operation Safe Haven have continued to intensify efforts aimed at securing the lives and property in the general area. “Special Operations Forces have been deployed to the Joint Operations Area covering the various flash points,” Enenche said. This was as he expressed the hope that “this move is expected to achieve the desired result with the provision of credible and actionable intelligence specifically from primary sources.”

He, nonetheless, enjoined the “locals” to cooperate with security agencies deployed in the general area, “by availing them with the required information that will be useful to our collective objective of taking out the criminals from the area.” The killing in Southern Kaduna had assumed a dangerous dimension. Several communities have been attacked by gunmen, alleged to be herdsmen while many have been killed and rendered homeless. In a related development, the military has said that actions were being reviewed at the highest level, to forestall possible infiltration of any of the country’s territories by suspected terrorist elements. It vowed that no part of the country will be opened to such vulnerability, as commitment to sustain the inviolability and sovereignty of the nation, remain unwavering.

The DMO’s coordinator said the declaration was in response to the warning by the United States African Command (AFRICOM) of possible infiltration of the West African sub-region by suspected Al-Qaeda and Islamic States’ terrorists. The Commander of AFRICOM, Maj-Gen. Dagvinhad issued the warning last week, noting that the terrorist groups had expanded their hold on Mali and also spread to Northern Burkina Faso, with noticeable attacks on infrastructure. In his reaction, which was the second since the alarm was raised, Enenche assured of the determination of military and sister agencies, to national security and public safety.

“Sequel to the warning by US AFRICOM that extremists have begun deploying several strategies to silently re-establish themselves across some regions in Africa, including the West Africa sub-region, the Armed Forces of Nigeria and all the relevant security agencies are leaving nothing to chance. “Consequently, actions in place in this regard are being reviewed to handle this all important intelligence appropriately.

“I am directed to assure the general public that this is not a one-off, but continuous effort as it were to ensure that the security agencies are ahead of this evolving security challenge,” he said. Meanwhile, the DHQ has said that criminal elements across the various theatres of operations in the country were being denied freedom of action, as troops continue to maintain dominance. It added that the development had earned the fighting troops commendation from the high command of the Armed Forces. “The Military High Command congratulates all the gallant troops of the Armed Forces and personnel of other security agencies for the feat recorded in various operations across the country. “Troops are further encouraged to remain determined and sustain the tempo in curtailing the activities of terrorists, armed bandits and other criminals.

“The High Command of the Armed Forces also reassures the general public of its unwavering commitment to securing the country for all human activities to strive,” the DMO coordinator stated. He, however, enjoined the public to continue providing timely information on the activities of suspected criminals in their various localities to the nearest military, or security agencies’ locations, for prompt and effective action.

Read Previous

Adoke gave me $2.2m cash to repay bank loan – Witness

Read Next

MDAs diverting revenue to fund trivialities, says Gbajabiamila

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *