Troops foil terrorist attacks, rescue abductees in Sokoto, Katsina

Troops of Sector 2, Operation Fansan Yamma, have neutralised armed terrorists, foiled a kidnapping attempt and recovered arms and rustled livestock in Sokoto and Katsina states.

The Media Information Officer of the Joint Task Force (North-West), Operation Fansan Yamma, Lt.-Col. Aliyu Danja, disclosed this in a statement issued yesterday in Sokoto.

According to him, the first operation occurred on June 21 when armed terrorists attempted to infiltrate Tureta town in Sokoto State.

Danja said that acting on actionable intelligence, vigilant troops engaged the criminals, forcing them to abandon their mission and flee.

“Following this initial encounter, aerial surveillance tracked the fleeing terrorists to Sulubawa Gidan Kare village, where they were observed moving with abducted civilians and rustled livestock.

“Acting promptly, the troops launched a hot pursuit. Despite encountering a hastily mounted ambush by the retreating terrorists, the troops displayed exceptional courage and superior firepower, fighting through the ambush and compelling the criminals to scatter,” he said.

He said the operation led to the successful rescue of the abductees, recovery of the rustled cattle and seizure of two motorcycles used by the terrorists.

In a related development, Danja said that in the early hours of June 22, troops carried out an intelligence-driven dawn raid on a known terrorist enclave in Matazu Local Government Area of Katsina State.

“During the ensuing firefight, two terrorists were neutralised, while several others fled the scene with varying degrees of gunshot wounds,” he said.

According to him, the operation also led to the recovery of a PKT assault rifle, an AK-47 rifle with ammunition, three motorcycles, mobile communication devices, rustled livestock and other logistical items used to facilitate criminal activities.

He assured the public that aggressive operations would be sustained to dismantle terrorist networks, deny them freedom of action and restore lasting peace and security across the North-West region.