The Nigerian Air Force on Monday said that the Air Component of Operation Whirl Punch has eliminated a syndicate of terrorists on 15 motor bikes in Kaduna State, in its relentless campaign to rid the North West and North Central regions of the menace of terrorism and kidnapping,
This was contained in a statement made available to Defence Correspondents in Abuja by the Director of Public Relations and Information (DPRI), of the Nigerian Air Force, Air Marshal Edward Gabkwet.
According to the statement, “the strike followed an intelligence report of the movement of the syndicate along the Kwiga-Kampamin Doka axis in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State.”
It added that the Intelligence also revealed that the same syndicate was responsible for the ambush on troops at Kwanan Mutuwa on 27 January this year as well as several attacks and abduction of innocent civilians in Birnin Gwari.
According to it, “on arrival at the suspected location, a deliberate and detailed scan revealed a trail of terrorists sighted moving in a convoy of about 15 motorcycles, each with at least 2 armed terrorists.
“Accordingly, the terrorists were trailed to a location where they converged before they were engaged and neutralized in a precision strike.”
It further explained that the aftermath of the air strike revealed that several of the terrorists were eliminated as a result of the strike.
According to the statement, “the success of this particular strike has drawn the attention of the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, who has commended Component Commander but cautioned that efforts must be sustained.
“While this does not call for celebration on our part, I must commend the professionalism of the crew for patiently trailing the criminals until an appropriate opportunity to strike presented itself. We must keep pushing and striving”, the statement quoted the Air Chief.
