Troops of the Armed Forces have neutralized 75 Terrorists and thwarted an estimated 646,189,690 naira in oil theft.
The Director of Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Markus Kanye, who disclosed this on Thursday in a statement detailing the activities of troops in ongoing military operations as at 13th February 2025, said that .
The elimination of terrorists, arrests of oil thieves and other criminals, as well as the rescue of kidnapped hostages follows a joint operation conducted by the land component of the Armed Forces, ONSA team, security agencies and hybrid forces. The operations include fighting and confidence building patrols, raids, ambushes and clearance as well as search and rescue operations.
A breakdown of the estimated sum in attempted oil theft in the Southsouth In the SS, includes 497,152 litres of stolen crude oil, 142,000 litres of illegally refined AGO and 4,075 litres of PMS.
Additionally, troops discovered and destroyed 164 crude oil cooking ovens, 37 dugout pits, 19 boats, 16 storage tanks, 38 drums and 42 illegal refining sites. Other items recovered include 3 pumping machines, 4 tricycles, 7 motorcycles, 5 mobile phones and 3 vehicles among others.
In a related development, troops recovered 104 and 2,639 assorted weapons and ammunition respectively. These includes, 55 AK47 rifles, 20 locally fabricated guns, 8 dane guns, 18 pump action guns, 1,826 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 376 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 366 rounds of 7.62 x 12.7mm ammo, 26 cartridges as well as other 14 assorted arms and 45 assorted ammunitions.
In the Northeast, troops of Operation HADIN KAI neutralized 22 terrorists, arrested 13 others and rescued 34 kidnapped hostages. They also recovered 12 Ak47 rifles, 2 G3 Rifles, 3 dane guns, 2 fabricated rifles, 102 rounds of 12.7mm ammo, 317 rounds of 7.62mm Special ammo, 82 rounds of 7.62 mm NATO, one RPG tube, 3 RPG bombs and 11 magazines. Also, 2 aircraft engines, one double barrel cannon gun, 16 missiles and the sum of N58,980.00 only amongst others was recovered.
In the Northwest Troops of OPERATION FANSAN YAMMA neutralized 58 terrorists, arrested 11 others and rescued 16 kidnapped hostages. Troops recovered 31 AK47 rifles, 9 fabricated rifles, 2 GPMGs, one RPG tube, 252 Chain link of 12.7mm, 558 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 94 rounds of 7.62mm NATO ammo, 12 magazines, 5 boefeng radios, 13 motorcycles, 11 mobile phones and the sum of N2,451,820.00 only, among others.
Troops of OPERATION WHIRL PUNCH in the Northeast arrested 51 violent extremists/criminals and recovered 2 fabricated rifles, 34 rounds of 7.62 mm Special ammo, 2 vehicles, 20 motorcycles
and 24 mobile phones amongst others.
In the Northcentral, troops of Operation SAFE HAVEN neutralized one, arrested 51 violent extremists and rescued 11 kidnapped hostages. Troops also recovered 3 AK 47 rifles, one fabricated rifle, 16 rounds of 7.62mm Special ammo, 4 magazines, 2 vehicles and 7 mobile phones among others.
Furthermore, in the Northcentral, troops of Operation WHIRL STROKE neutralized 3 violent extremists, arrested 14 and rescued 12 kidnapped hostages. They also recovered 2 AK-47 rifles, one dane gun, one baretta pistol, 2 fabricated rifles, 134 rounds of 7.62mm Special
ammo, 3 rounds of 9mm ammo, one magazine, 10 motorcycles and the sum of N2,667,720.00 only.
The momentum against pipeline vandals in the Southsouth was maintained by troops of Operation DELTA SAFE, whose operations led to the destruction of several illegal refining sites and the subsequent recovery of stolen products.
Between 4th and 10th February 2025, troops responded to activities of pipeline vandals and other criminal elements in Ekeremor LGA of Bayelsa State and Ethiope East and Ugheli LGAs of Delta State. They also arrested others in Onelga LGA of Rivers State. Troops apprehended 23 suspected oil thieves and other violent extremists. Troops also recovered 2 baofeng radios, 2 magazines, 9 assorted arms and 162 assorted ammunitions.
In the SouthEast, troops of Operation UDO KA neutralized 4 IPOB/ESN terrorists, arrested 6 others and rescued 4 hostages. They recovered one FN rifle, one Single Barrel Pump Action gun, one double barrel gun, 2 Pistols, one dane gun, 440 rounds of 7.62 mm NATO, 60 rounds of 7.62mm Special ammo, 13 magazines, one RPG bomb, 2 hand grenades, 15 IEDs, 33 Boafeng Radios, one pair of binoculars, 6 mobile phones and the sum of 46,300.00 only.
Kanye said that all recovered items, arrested suspects and rescued hostages were handed over to the relevant authorities for further action.
“The gallant men and women of the AFN will continue to carry out constitutional responsibilities of protecting lives and properties of all Nigerians in line with our constitutional roles”, he concluded.
