The Nigeria Air Force (NAF) has begun Operation Thunder Strike to flush out Boko Haram insurgents in selected locations in Northeast.
Chief of Air Staff Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, who addressed reporters yesterday when he visited Maiduguri, Borno State, said the visit was to enable him have firsthand information on NAFโs operation in the area.
Abubakar said the operation was designed to deny insurgents the freedom to attack soft targets in communities, markets and places of gathering.
He said: โOur men have been doing an excellent job. They have been working round the clock to ensure that our communities are safe and secured.
โWe feel we need to appreciate them, and convey President Muhammadu Buhariโs appreciation for all they have been doing to ensure our communities are safe.
โWe have also begun Operation Thunder Strike and we have seen excellent results. We want to ensure that those people with evil intention do not have the opportunity to attack our communities and troops.
โFrom what I have been briefed, it is clear that commitment, diligence and patriotism have been put in.โ
On whether the operation will end Boko Haram insurgency, Abubakar said: โThe issue of defeating Boko Horam has been over-flogged; what we are simply doing is to ensure that our communities are safe.
โI can assure you that Boko Haram has been substantially defeated; they cannot function as an organised fighting force; they can only attack soft targets, go to a market or a large gathering to detonate their explosives.
โWhat we are simply doing is to deny them these soft targets, and we are doing this with the support of the fighting troops of Operation Lafiya Dole.โ
The Air chief added that the major challenge is the weather condition in the area, especially at this time of the year.
โOur major challenge is the weather, which we cannot control. But from what I have seen, the operation is successful.
โI hail our fighters who put in their best despite the harsh weather conditions,โ he added.
The NAF said it had neutralised many fleeing insurgents in its Operation Thunder Strike against insurgents.
A statement yesterday by the Director of Public Relations and Information, AVM Olatokunbo Adesanya, said the air interdiction started on Monday.
The statement reads: โOn the first day of the operation, air strikes from NAF aircraft destroyed terroristsโ structures and killed insurgents at two settlements in Gargash, Borno State.
โEarlier, a NAF Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft observed terroristsโ presence at a settlement in Gargash, following which the Air Task Force deployed NAF fighter aircraft to attack the location.
โAfter the attacks, some of the fighter platforms proceeded to the east of Gargash, where terroristsโ activities were also observed.
โAs a result of the attacks, terroristsโ structures within the settlements were destroyed and set on fire, killing some insurgents, while some fled into the bush.
โConsequently, another wave of air strikes was launched to strafe the hideouts, killing many of the fleeing insurgents.โ
