The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) Thursday troops deployed to different theatres of operations said, troops neutralised 624 terrorists and arrested 1,051 including their logistic suppliers and informants.
Director Defence Media Operations Major General Edward Buba who disclosed this while briefing journalists in Abuja, said troops rescued 563 hostages and recovered troops recovered 707 assorted weapons, 16,487 assorted ammunition and denied the oil thieves crude estimated to worth the sum of over #700 Mill (N705,836,036.00) only.
According to him, breakdown of weapon recovered in the month of May includes 411 AK47 rifles, 234 locally fabricated guns, 43 pump action guns, 231 dane guns, 10,782 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 4,310 rounds of 7.62mm NATO, 1,623 rounds 7.62 x 54mm ammo, 1,023 rounds of 511 rounds of 9mm and 2,100 live cartridges.
Speaking further, he warned civilian population against unprovoked attacks on its personnel, saying that the “development has negative consequences on troops morale.”
The warning is sequel to recent incidents in Abuja’s Banex Plaza where unarmed military personnel were attacked by civilians and Okuama in Delta state where 17 soldiers on a peace mission were murdered.
He warned that such attacks will no longer be tolerated.
He noted that the unprovoked killings of 17 personnel in Okuama in Delta state, coupled with the recent assault of unarmed personnel in Banex Plaza in Abuja were worrisome and leaves much to be desired.
According to him, these occurrences are unhealthy for our national security, counterproductive and amount to self sabotage.
He particularly pointed out the issues at Banex Plaza, stressing that jungle justice is not the solution, either by personnel or civilians.
” If you harm one personnel in one area, another will be affected elsewhere, as the spirit of esprit de corps among troops is strong”.
He warned civilians to be mindful of their utterances and actions, which can impact troops’ productivity.
He said, “Surely, it is not the way to treat any human, certainly not military personnel that places themselves in arms to protect citizens or to safeguard the nation.
“The military has demonstrated a high sense of discipline and professionalism in the face of untoward attacks. Our professionalism must not be mistaken for weakness”.
He posited that to win this war, “we need the support of people. We also hope that the people would equally realize that they need the military to win the war to guarantee their safety”.
“Accordingly, this must not repeat itself as it jeopardizes our common interest. If troops err, report them and the military justice system will address the matter. We are at war, and citizens must realize that they also have a responsibility by their actions and utterances to support troops to keep the morale and fighting spirit of troops at optimal at all times”.
