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The Nigerian military on Saturday revealed how it had conducted the rescue operation for 344 boys kidnapped from their school in Kankara, Katsina state, on December 11.
He revealed that while both kinetic and non-kinetic approaches were used to ensure all the boys were saved unharmed, there was resistance from the kidnappers who ambushed the troops.
Maj.-Gen. John Enenche, Coordinator, Defense Media Operations, and retired Major-General. Ahmed Jibrin, former director of military intelligence, reported on Saturday when they appeared on a special edition of Nigeria Television Authority’s program “Good Morning Nigeria”.
The Nigeria News Agency (NAN) reports that Jibrin is currently the Special, Technical Advisor to the Minister of Defense, the retired Major-General. Bashir Magashi.
Jibrin said that following the kidnapping of the boys, the minister led a delegation, including department heads and a national security adviser, to Katsina and Kankara.
He said the minister gave the rules of engagement leading the troops to ensure the kidnapped boys were rescued without causing any casualties and as soon as possible.
“As a result of the directive, the troop moved closer to the kidnappers from four different fronts, including reinforcement that was brought in from other divisions to ensure that the entire site was cordoned off.
“The bandits were all under siege and they were fully aware of it, feeling the impact of the presence of the troops both in the air and on the ground.
“When they approached the place where the boys were being held, the troops encountered pockets of opposition which they cleared and went deeper into the forest.
“Although there were no casualties from the boys, many of the bandits were neutralized because in the military attempt to advance they ambushed two places along the way.
“In fact, the second they ambushed, there was serious resistance because they were hiding and occupying the road.
“They delayed the movement of the troops for a few hours before being neutralized,” he said.
Jibrin said that while the troops were on the ground, negotiations were underway at another level of the rescue effort.
He said the troop could not fully demobilize the bandits due to possible collateral damage, as the kidnapped boys were being used as a human shield.
On the Boko Haram terrorists’ claim that they were responsible for the kidnapping, Jibrin said the group was only looking for cheap relevance.
“Shekau does not have the reach to complete the kidnapping because a lot is being done to stop them in the northeast.
“He is simply taking advantage of what happened to get publicity locally and internationally, it is clear that the kidnapping was committed by bandits
“All their efforts when they tried to reach out to the bandits, which they did, were monitored,” he said.
For his part, Enenche said the rescue mission, like any other, was a delicate operation because if it was not carried out in a very professional manner, the tide could turn negative.
“This is an operation where you are not relying on your ability on platforms and mechanical weapons but on your ability to effectively conduct the mission with unarmed combat.
“It means you have to silence your enemies and take your objective away without shooting.
“It’s very delicate in the sense that if you don’t handle the operation well, the children between you and the enemies will now become the victims.
“When they become the victims, the people on the outside will attribute it to the failure of your security forces,” he said.
He said the special troops deployed on the mission were on site and could not have blinked even for an hour throughout the days of the mission.
Enenche said the information provided locally was also very encouraging while the support they got from all stakeholders helped.
“There was no conspiracy of silence. Everything we needed was provided even by the locals and before you knew it we were able to locate the place.
“All kinetic and non-kinetic blockages were all effectively monitored.
“It’s to the extent that even when they were going to leave their enclave to do wholesale purchases in the market, we got information,” he said.
Enenche said a lot was done during the rescue mission to ensure there was no triggering happy incident and fearful release of bandits against schoolchildren. (NOPE)
Vanguard News Nigeria
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