A total of 125, 517 terrorists and their families have so far surrendered to troops in the North-East Theatre, Chief of Defence Operations, Maj.-Gen. Emeka Onumajuru has disclosed.
Maj.-Gen. Onumajuru stated this on Tuesday while addressing journalists in Abuja.
He also stressed that over 60,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) were also relocated in conjunction with the Borno State Government, thereby decongesting some IDP camps.
“Our adversaries, about 125,517 terrorists and their families have so far surrendered. And also, those in war work attunement have been successfully moved to Operation Safe Corridor Gombe as part of our non-kinetic lines of operations,” Maj.-Gen. Onumajuru said.
He added, “Statistics on major roads that have been reopened, on markets that have been reopened, also shows that the troops in the Northwest have done well and economic activities have increased.
“The farming planting session was also good. We are working towards ensuring that the harvest is also as successful as planting. So, Borno in the Northeast remains a success.”
The Chief of Defence Operations further stated that the security situation in the North-Central geopolitical zone is also stable.
Onumajuru said, “Going down to other theatres in the North-Central is also stable, less the challenges we’ll have in the Shiroro areas in Niger State and also some other areas within the same state.
“However, we are tackling the situations as part of the overall challenges we’ll have in the Northwest.
“The rest of the North-central is relatively stable. Operations of militia groups in Benue and Nasarawa states have been reduced. Likewise, the speed of kidnapping in these general areas.
“And our operations in this area were based on key four pillars. First was offensive operations which were conducted to clear all major infractions along key pipelines, particularly the Trans-Niger pipeline and other areas as identified by the NNPC.
“We’ve also been able to carry out deterrent operations, having cleared those areas, and ensure that oil thieves and militants do not have access to pipeline routes,” he added.
He also stressed that the security situation in the South-East is stable, noting that the sit-at-home orders has been contained.
Onumajuru said, “In the South-East, the situation is also stable. A large number of Indigenous People Of Biafra People (IPOB) and ESN have been neutralised.
“And also, there’s a noticeable containment in their ability to enforce sit-at-home on Mondays. This was a key weapon of IPOB, fully weaponised, and now, we are beginning to reduce the ability of sit-at-home to improve socio-economic activities. The effect of IPOB in the region is gradually reducing.
On Plateau State, Onumajuru said the situation has fully stabilised due to stabilisation operations, adding that militia operations in Benyo and Nasarawa are being reduced through troops deployed in those areas.
He added that the South-West has always remained very peaceful.