Nigeria Air Force pounds Sambisa forest; -Destroys Boko Haram logistics…No soldiers missing – Commander

BY ABDULLAHI ISAH, MAIDUGURI

The Nigeria Air Force has said that the air component of Operation Lafiya Dole is intensifying the bombardment of terrorists’ locations in the Sambisa forest and its environs to bring to an end the Boko Haram insurgency that has bedeviled the North-East geo-political zone of the country for some time.

The air component Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Air Commodore Isiaka Amao, who disclosed this at a media briefing held at the Operation Lafiya Dole Media Centre Maiduguri, said they are intensifying the bombardment of Sambisa forest to support the Army arm of Operation Lafiya Dole.

Air Commodore Amao said in October alone the Air Force carried out over 40 interdiction missions with 80 per cent success which has greatly degraded the insurgents’ logistics in Sambisa forest.

The Air component Commander said however, that in the process they lost a colleague, Flight Lieutenant Ebitimi Owei during one of the missions, stressing that the demise of their colleague will not deter them, as he died for the unity of the nation, hence his death will not be in vain.

He said “other activities carried out during the period under review include armed recce, border patrols, reconnaissance and surveillance. One of such missions, he said, led to the successful interception and destruction of a boat carrying food supplies to the insurgents along the Nigeria-Cameroun border.”

Also in his remarks, the theater Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Yusha`u Abubakar said in their continued offensive against the insurgents, his men have discovered a bomb making factory, pipes, vehicles radiators and many other bomb making devices at the Gujba College of Agriculture in Yobe state.

Major Gen. Abubakar said Boko Haram terrorists and their commanders have adopted the strategy of sending their wives and children to Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps. He said that they are trying by all means to sneak into Maiduguri to cause havoc and called on the general public more especially the camp managers to be careful with those they receive at the camps.

On the issue of the purported missing 101 soldiers and armoured tanker reported by some online News media, the theater Commander said the story was just one of the online publication jargons and that there is no element of truth in the report, as he has never received such report.

The theater Commander called on the general public to cooperate with them and give them information, as security is everybody`s business, adding that the feats they have recorded so far could not have been achieved without information from the general public.