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ABUJA, Nigeria —The Defence Headquarter on Friday said no fewer than 8,034 terrorists were killed and 11,623 arrested during various operations across the country in 2024.
Also, crude oil worth N57,052,218,551.00 was recovered and 6,376 kidnapped victims were rescued by the military between January and December 2024.
This was disclosed by the Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Buba, at the biweekly update on military operations in Abuja.
According to Buba, “Troops aggression across the various theatres of operation since the beginning of the year culminated in 8,034 neutralised terrorists, 11,623 arrests and 6,376 rescued hostages.
“Also, troops recovered 53,101,430 litres of stolen crude oil, 9,179,181 litres of illegally refined AGO and 90,595 litres of DPK. Others are 156,095 litres of PMS amongst other items.”
It was gathered that the troops also recovered 8,216 weapons and 211,459 rounds of ammunition.
Giving the breakdown, he said, 4,053 AK47 rifles, 1,123 locally-fabricated guns, 731 Dane guns and 240 pump-action guns were discovered.
Others are 120,247 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 41,515 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 5,373 cartridges, 1,940 assorted arms and 25,664 ammunitions.
Buba assured the public that the military would not relent in its efforts to pressure criminals out of the system through ongoing operations in the various theatres across the country.
“The military is, through these operations, increasingly creating conditions in which terrorists cannot carry out acts of terror or harm citizens.
“On the whole, the armed forces are constantly examining ways to improve the effectiveness of its operations and guarantee the safety of citizens,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, has called on operational commanders to develop strategic leadership skills to address national security challenges effectively.
He made this call at the inauguration of the Nigerian Army Resource Centre Leadership and Strategic Studies Course 3/2024, held on Thursday in Abuja.
Represented by the Chief of Training (Army), Maj. Gen. Sani Mohammed, the COAS highlighted that the course reflected the visionary efforts of previous army chiefs to enhance officers’ leadership capabilities.
“The curriculum extensively covers Nigeria’s security framework, addressing leadership and management, policy and strategy, research methodology, psychology, national security, defense economics, military history, war studies, entrepreneurship, peace support operations, and logistics planning,” Oluyede stated.
