Troops of the Joint Task Force North West Operation FANSAN YAMMA have intensified their offensive against terrorists and bandits, killing two terrorists, rescuing a kidnapped victim, arresting eight suspected collaborators, and recovering 110 rustled cattle in a series of coordinated operations across Kaduna and Zamfara states.
According to a statement made available to The News Chronicle, the operations, conducted between June 27 and 28, dealt fresh blows to criminal networks operating in the North-West.
In one of the operations, a combined team of Sector 1 troops and vigilantes engaged terrorists transporting kidnapped victims on motorcycles during a fighting patrol in Giwa and Kaduna North Local Government Areas of Kaduna State.
Following a fierce gun battle, the terrorists abandoned two motorcycles and fled into nearby bushes. Troops rescued one kidnapped victim alive but recovered the body of another who had been murdered by the fleeing terrorists.
Later on June 27, troops responded to a terrorist attack on Dariya Village in Giwa Local Government Area, where the assailants had killed one resident and injured three others before security forces arrived.
The troops pursued the fleeing attackers and intercepted them on motorcycles, leading to another firefight in which two terrorists were neutralised. Security personnel recovered a motorcycle, ammunition, charms and other personal items from the scene.
In Zamfara State, troops of Sector 2, acting on intelligence, arrested two suspects in Magami, Gusau Local Government Area, for allegedly providing medical support to terrorist groups operating in the area.
Similarly, troops on fighting patrol around Polewire Village in Birnin Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State arrested six suspects found under suspicious circumstances after engaging fleeing terrorists in a gun battle. The suspects are currently under investigation.
On June 28, troops, working alongside local vigilantes, launched an operation against cattle rustlers in Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State. Acting on intelligence, they laid a snap ambush along the rustlers’ suspected escape route at Ungwan Gora bush.
The sustained pressure forced the rustlers to abandon the stolen livestock and flee, enabling troops to recover all 110 rustled cattle, which were later returned to their rightful owners.
The Joint Task Force reaffirmed its commitment to sustaining offensive operations against terrorists and other criminal groups, pledging to deny them freedom of action while protecting lives and property across the North-West.
The force also urged members of the public to continue supporting security operations by providing timely and credible intelligence to security agencies.
