The Air Task Force (ATF) of Operation LAFIYA DOLE has killed several Boko haram fighters and destroyed their logistics facilities at Bakari Gana on the fringes of the Sambisa Forest.
NAF spokesperson, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola said in a statement that the air strike was conducted under a new operation codr named ” Operation Decisive Edge.”
He said Operation DECISIVE EDGE was initiated to “specifically target known Boko haram terrorists hideouts that are inaccessible to ground forces due to the terrain as well as the fact that the approaches to the locations are heavily mined.”
“The attack was executed after series of Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions confirmed that the Boko haram terrorists were storing their fuel and other logistics in some huts within Bakari Gana,” Daramola said.
“Accordingly, the ATF detailed its fighter jets to engage the location in two waves of attack, recording devastating hits in the target area leading to the destruction of the fuel storage facilities, which were seen engulfed in flames. Some of the Boko haram fighters were also neutralized in the process.
“Earlier in the day, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) had also provided close air support as a combination of air and ground operations dealt a decisive blow on the Boko haram terrorists neutralizing several of their fighters and destroying some gun trucks.”
He said the NAF is operating in conjunction with ground forces,and would sustain the “intensity of its air campaign to shape the battlespace in the Northeast for the effective conduct of further ground and air operations.”