Bombing will continue until vandals are subdued, says Military
ABOUT 147 suspected militants might have been killed
in the ongoing joint military operation in riverine communities
affected by recent spate of criminal attacks in Lagos and Ogun States.
The affected communities had come under the siege of hoodlums
suspected to be Ijaw militants with about 50 residents reportedly killed
in the past weeks while few others were kidnapped.
The development has led to the desertion of some of the affected
communities by residents as many of them continued to leave in droves
until last Thursday when the military commenced a raid on the camps of
suspected militants. Speaking with Sunday Sun reporter, a local
security source told our correspondent on phone that casualty recorded
on the part of the militants as at yesterday afternoon might not be less
than 150.
‘’The casualty as at yesterday as we were told was about 114 but this
morning we heard that more of them have been killed and that the figure
may be up to 150,’’ the source said. Asked if there was any incident
involving civilian casualty, the source said: “I cannot say anything
on that but all I know is that people have continued to leave some of
these areas perhaps out of fear.’’ Lagos State police Public Relations
Officer, Dolapo Badmos, a Superintendent of Police, on the other hand
dismissed the fear of possibility of civilian casualty. “It is a wrong
impression to be talking about civilian casualty because the operation
is taking place deep in the creeks. It is not in the communities,’’ she
said.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian military has described as cheap
propaganda, insinuations that its aerial bombardment at the Arepo area
of Ogun State was on targets that were not pipeline vandals and
militants. The Flag Officer Commanding Western Naval Command, Rear
Admiral Ferguson Bobai who is the coordinator of the exercise said the
targets that were destroyed by the military were carefully assessed
using aerial surveillance technology mounted on the Nigerian Air Force
aircraft involved in the operations.
He spoke to Sunday Sun on phone explaining that, “initially
we were directed not to use air power, but when we carried out
assessment of the area a lot of the vandal had moved from areas
accessible by water to very difficult terrain. Following this
development we returned to the Chief of Defence Staff, demanding that
airpower is the only way for the vandals to be dislodged. And in using
airpower just like I told you during the briefing we assessed the area
and made sure that the targets are very ones that we needed to take out.
“We have video recording from the surveillance aircraft and we also
have still photos which were analysed properly and carefully before we
commenced the operation. I must tell you that this is just propaganda to
whip up sentiments.”
Admiral Bobai said the vandals are economic saboteurs and that the
aerial bombardment would continue until the vandals are subdued.
“This evening we will deploy our surveillance aircraft to take shots
of areas bombed and we will then analyse the photos and if there are
still targets we need to take out, we will continue the bombing until
the targets are completely taken out,” he noted.
He said that the bombardment was a directive of the Defence
Headquarters and the need to bombard the area came following incidences
of pipeline vandalisation, kidnapping and armed robbery.
Just last month, the military and component of the operation
code-named Operation Awatse got directive from the Chief of Defence
Staff, General Gabriel Olonisakin to carry out an operation in the
general area of Arepo with a view to dismantling vandals camps and
shanties scattered around Arepo, Ibafo, Ishawo and all the areas around
that axis.
Credit:Sunnewsonline
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