FOLLOWING a tip off that members of the Boko Haram were
planning a major suicide mission in Zaria, Kaduna and Suleja,
Niger State, to coincide with the Independence anniversary
celebration, the military and the State Security Service (SSS) on
Sunday launched a joint operation on a residential building in
Gaskiya Layout, Zaria, Kaduna State, to flush out the terrorists.
During the operation some of the Boko Haram members were
killed and others, including a woman, were arrested.
It was also discovered that the building was heavily loaded with
explosives and being used as warehouse for storage of
Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs).
The army shot at the suspected mini bomb factory which
exploded and destroyed about seven houses in the area. Calm has
returned in Zaria and environs but there was intensive stop and
search by the military at check points along major roads across
the state.
During the operation, the military shot and killed two suspected
Boko Haram members while 10 others sustained varying degrees
of injury and were rushed to an undisclosed location.
An eyewitness said during the military operation on Sunday
morning, the military stormed a hideout where the suspected
Boko Haram members were hiding in Zaria and disorganised
them. As some were making attempts to escape, the military
shot, killing two, injuring ten others.
According to a source,"the operation followed a tip-off by patriotic
citizens."
"The Army Public Relations Officer at the Depot Army, Captain
Ibrahim Abdullahi, confirmed the incident. He said in a release that
in the early hours of Sunday, suspected members of Boko Haram
engaged their troops and the SSS in a fierce gun battle in Gaskiya
Layout, Tukur-Tukur, Zaria."
Investigations had since commenced to unravel the activities of
terrorists in the area and determine the extent of involvement of
those apprehended.
Meanwhile, tragedy struck at the weekend in Minna, Niger State, as
three policemen were attacked by some unidentified gunmen,
leaving two of the policemen dead while the third escaped death
by a whisker.
The incident occurred at about 8.25 p.m. on Saturday when the
policemen were on a stop and search duty around Kpakungu
roundabout in Chanchaga Local Government Area of the state and
some 50 metres away from the community’s Divisional Police
Headquarters under the state Police Command.
Nigerian Tribune further gathered that no sooner had the
hoodlums carried out the attack on the policemen than they
quickly boarded their operational vehicle and sped off from the
scene and disappeared into the night before the surviving
policeman could call for re-nforcement from the nearby police
station.
It was further learnt that as soon as the news of the attack on the
policemen spread among the community, residents and
neighbouring communities like Gbagannu and Gidan Mangoro
were gripped with fear that the unidentified hoodlums might
strike before daybreak on Sunday.
Some insider police sources informed Nigerian Tribune that the
policemen were allegedly caught unawares by the suspected
armed robbers at their duty post while sitting down and were
engrossed in a discussion when they were supposed to be
conducting a stop and search duty at the spot.
The source who craved for anonymity stated that one of the
fallen policemen was a constable while the other one was a
sergeant who was recently transferred from the Police Secondary
School, Minna, adding that their corpses had been deposited at the
mortuary of the General Hospital, Minna.
It was further learnt that the hoodlums carted away one AK 47
rifle allegedly belonging to one of the deceased Policemen who
were killed in Minna on Saturday.
Also reacting to the incident, the Police Public Relations Officer,
Niger State Command, Mr Pius Edobor, confirmed the incident in
an interview with Nigerian Tribune in Minna on Sunday.
by ROTMANLUV 2023-07-08, 17:34
