Jutha Gupah, Maiduguri January 2, 2020.
Troops of Operation Lafiya Dole and the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) have arrested 75 terrorists with the rescue of 147 people in three councils of Borno state. The operations; were conducted on December 27 and 28, 2019 in three councils of Monguno, Kukawa and Guzamala of he state. Army Operations Media Coordinator, Col. Aminu Iliyasu stated Thursday in Maiduguri that; “The rescued civilians had been held hostages for over a decade without traveling out to other towns and villages.” He said out of the rescued, 79 are males along with 68 women, who had been under the captivity of criminal elements. He said the troops conveyed the people to a humanitarian facility in Monguno and handed them over to officials of State’s Emergency Management Agency (SEMA).
While the children, he added; were administered with polio vaccine by the Buratai Intervention Task Force Initiative. In a related development, troops of 25 Task Force Brigade deployed at Army Super Camp 2 Damboa, Borno State, on 25 December 2019 conducted an operation and arrested a high profile Boko Haram informant/logistics supplier, Ibrahim Bulama Buba and 2 others suspects on Christmas day. According to him, Buba’s couriers are located at Shuwari village in Damboa District of the state. Similarly, troops of 242 Battalion deployed in Monguno council area, also arrested two logistic supplier suspects. They included Abubakar Aisami and Modu Baba with food stuff and drugs concealed in bags of corn flour for delivery to Boko Haram terrorists. The troops therefore, cleared three communities, including Gudumbali, the council headquarters of Guzamala. “They engaged the marauding terrorists in a fierce fire battle,” he said, forcing them to retreat in disarray towards Garere village into Lake Chad. According to him, the village is a critical gateway in Guzamala council into Tumbuns of Lake Chad.
He said, after the clearance operation, troops thorough searched the illegal market place and recovered and destroyed 15 vehicles belonging to Boko Haram criminals. The Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Tukur Buratai commended the troops for the successes so far recorded throughout last year. He also assured them of improved welfare in the Year 2020 and further commends Field Commanders and Principal Staff Officers as well as other officers and men for their efforts in implementing all strategic directives in 2019.
