The Nigerian Air Force has announced that the Air Component of Operation Hadin Kai has destroyed terrorists’ Improvised Explosive Devices facility at Grazah, located deep in Borno’s Mandara Hills.
This was said on Thursday in Abuja by AVM Edward Gabkwet, the Director of Public Relations and Information of the NAF.
Gebkwet stated that the air interdiction was in response to recent attacks on innocent civilians in the state by IEDs and suicide bombers.
He stated that air attacks were carried out on August 2 in reaction to intelligence indicating the presence of a probable IED manufacturing and a storage place for other logistics.
According to him, this IED factory has been suspected of being relocated for some time, first from Gwoza to Timbuktu Triangle in Sambisa Forest, and eventually to Grazah in the Mandara Hills.
READ MORE: Plateau Police Crack Down On Curfew Violators, Arrest 51 Suspects
He said, “Frequent relocation of IED factories has been attributed to the enormous fire power on the terrorists’ enclaves by the combined efforts of the entire security apparatus of the theatre of operation.
“The IED factory location at Grazah had been under surveillance for weeks with various installations observed and activities of armed terrorists in the area found to be consistent with those protecting a strategic location.
“Additionally, two gun trucks were sighted tucked under a large tree near the suspected IED factory.
“These findings thus necessitated the need for an air strike on the location in order to destroy the suspected IED factory and neutralise the terrorists.”
Gabkwet stated that the targets had been acquired and effectively destroyed, and that the dense cloud of smoke that followed the air attacks proved the destruction of the IED factory and the gun trucks.
NAN
