TheCable

Tukur Buratai, chief of army staff, has commended troops of Operation Lafiya Dole (OPLD) for reportedly defeating Boko Haram insurgents at Buni Gari village in Yobe state on Saturday.

Speaking on Sunday while visiting wounded soldiers in Damaturu, the state capital, Buratai applauded the troops for their gallantry and resilience on the battlefield.

Lawrence Araba, commander sector 2 OPLD, while briefing the chief of army staff, said the troops killed 105 Boko Haram insurgents during the encounter.

In a statement, Sagir Musa, acting director of army public relations, said the success of the soldiers was achieved owing to intelligence reports prior to the attack.

“Based on intelligence received about the plan by the terrorists to attack Buni Gari, our troops swiftly intercepted and engaged the criminals in fierce battle that led to the killing of 105 Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists as well as the capture of several arms and ammunition from the criminals,” the commander said.

“Initial situation report reported that 10 terrorists were Neutralized. However, following exploitation by our troops, a total of 105 Boko Haram/ISWAP Criminals are confirmed to have met their waterloo as a result of the encounter and some of the pictures are here for you to see.”

The commander said items captured from the insurgents include five AK-47 rifles, three GPMG, one Duska anti-aircraft gun, one PKT gun, two handheld radio, while one gun truck was destroyed.

He said Buratai assured the troops of the necessary support and asked them to scale up the momentum to ensure the defeat of insurgency soon.