The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) reports that the Air Component of Operation Hadin Kai has successfully dismantled a terrorists’ IED factory located in Grazah, deep within the Mandara Hills in Borno.
This was said in a statement made on Thursday in Abuja by AVM Edward Gabkwet, the NAF’s director of public relations and information.
According to Gebkwet, the air interdiction followed recent IED and suicide bomber attacks in the state on defenseless civilians.
He said that intelligence about the possible location of an IED factory and storage area for other logistics led to the airstrikes that were carried out on August 2.
He claimed that this IED factory had been suspected of moving for some time, initially from Gwoza to the Timbuktu Triangle in the Sambisa Forest and then to Grazah in the Mandara Hills.
“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,’’ he said.
The targets were successfully taken out and destroyed, according to Gabkwet, who also stated that the destruction of the IED factory and the gun trucks was verified by the dense smoke cloud that ensued after the airstrikes.
(NAN)
