The Nigeria army yesterday warned members of the public to be wary of people dressed as “mad men”, especially in the north-east.
According to the army, such people could be suicide bombers waiting to detonate their explosive devices.
Acting director of defence information, Brig. Gen. Rabe Abubakar, issued the warning yesterday, following Friday’s bomb blast at Gombi market, Adamawa state, that resulted in several deaths.
He said it had come to the notice of the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) that Boko Haram members in their desperation to cause colossal havoc, had now devised a new method where they dress like mad persons to gain unsuspecting access to public areas to detonate bombs.
Abubakar, in the statement, said two male suicide bombers dressed like mad women carried out the suicide bomb attack in Gombi.
“The Defence Headquarters therefore urges our fellow good citizens across the country to be wary of mad persons approaching markets, public places or crowded areas so as to nip this ugly trend in the bud. Nigerians are also enjoined to be security-conscious at all times and should endeavour to report any suspicious person or object to security agencies for prompt action,” he added.
Also yesterday, the Nigerian Airforce (NAF) yesterday said it had sustained aerial bombardment of Sambisa Forest with over 280 operational sorties conducted against terrorist’s targets in the area in the last one month.
Deputy Theatre Commander Air of Operation Lafiya Dole, Air Vice Marshal Isiaka Oladayo Amao, stated this at a media briefing in Maiduguri.
He said the air strikes and bombardments were being conducted by the Air Component of the Operation Lafiya Dole in the North-East, and added that the ongoing and sustained air operations and surveillance within the Theater of operation in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States were intensified between December 2015 and January 2016, towards ending the Boko Haram threat.
“In continuation of the counter insurgency, the air component in the last one month conducted 286 operational sorties against terrorists’ targets from 25 December to date in the Sambisa forest covering an area of 157,000km2 which is equivalent to the total land mass of South Korea, Portugal and Togo in a total of 536 hours, 21 minutes were flown by various platforms engaged in the operations,
“This translates into 316,637.5 litres of aviation fuel which amounts to N60.3 million, excluding the cost of maintenance and armament expended,” he said.
Amao further explained that prominent operations among the missions carried out included an air strike on December 25, 2015, where some terrorists’ leaders and junior commanders, who gathered for a leadership meeting in Sambisa Forest, were neutralised by a precision strike which led to the killing of several Boko haram terrorists.
He said another significant strike was conducted on January 17, 2016 following intelligence report on the location of a High Value Terrorists (Boko Haram HVT) leader taking refuge at a location South of Arra village in the Sambisa Forest, where air strikes neutralised the target.
He listed some areas of the successful airstrikes conducted to include; Gadzama, Ngwalimiri, Dure and Dure Takwalla, Ajigin, Bitta, Gulumba Gana, Sigel, Damasak and Kumshe communities now occupied by insurgents.
Others are; Yajiwa, Asaga, Tumbun Gini and Mada towns, amongst others, as well as medical evacuation missions which were also carried out at Marte Local Government area and Banki town of Borno January 21, 2015.
Amao said the Nigerian Airforce, through its component in Operation Lafiya Dole, was focused on sustaining air operations and providing support to ground troops of the Armed Forces’ strive to rid Nigeria of the Boko Haram insurgency.
Source: Leadership
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