NAF Fighter Planes Kill 25 Bandits in Air Strikes

 

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) fighter jets on Sunday destroyed the logistics base of bandits at Ajia Wonaka in Zamfara State, killing 25 of them.

Fifty people were killed by bandits a few days ago, a situation which triggered protests by indigenes of the state and human rights groups, who accused President Muhammadu Buhari of failing to provide security. However, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) has said the situation was a reprisal.

"I must say that the Zamfara State incident is quite disheartening. The information so far is that the attack was a reprisal," Defence spokesman, Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, responded.

Also, an update provided by NAF spokesman, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, said the air strikes followed intelligence reports that the bandits were using a compound within Ajia as a logistics store.

“The Air Task Force (ATF) for Operation Diran Mikiya has successfully destroyed bandits’ logistics base at Ajia and neutralised dozens of the criminals at Ajia and Wonaka in Birnin Magaji Local Government Area of the state.

“The operation was executed sequel to human intelligence reports indicating that the bandits were using a compound within Ajia as a logistics store to support their operations,” NAF said in a statement.

 

The statement further disclosed that: “Consequently, the ATF dispatched a Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Alpha Jet, supported by an Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platform to attack the compound, scoring accurate strikes on the target and causing it to erupt in flames, which engulfed the structures and resulted in the neutralisation of some of the bandits.

“Few survivors seen fleeing the vicinity of the target area were also taken out in follow-on attacks while others, who managed to escape the area, were tracked down to Wonaka and equally neutralised. Independent human intelligence sources subsequently confirmed that more than 25 armed bandits were neutralised in the attacks on the two locations.

“The NAF working in close coordination with other security agencies will sustain its operations to neutralise the bandits and deny them freedom of action in the North-west.”