Soldiers On Red Alert In Abuja As Death From Kaduna Terrorist Ambush Rises To 17

Soldiers have been placed on red alert following intelligence report of planned terror attack on the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.

The development came amid reports that casualties arising from an ambush on an army camp had risen to 17. GreenWhiteGreen GWG had earlier reported that the casualty level was seven.

Meanwhile arising from renewed terrorist activities around Abuja, troops have been specifically deployed to villages and area councils located along the Abuja/Lokoja expressway namely Abaji, Kwali and Gwagwalada Area Councils.

Indicative of the alert, Daily Sun sighted some of the soldiers on cordon and search operations at Giri close to the University of Abuja. The soldiers have mounted security check points on all entry/exit points into the FCT.

It was gathered that following the attack on the Abuja/Kaduna train last Tuesday, the Army authorities met and put strategies in place to prevent any attack on the city and surrounding states. It also established a new Forward Operation Base (FOB) at Rijana, where the terrorists planted an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) to blow off the rail lines.

Daily Sun gathered that the soldiers are targeting specific vehicles and persons which cannot be mentioned in print so as not to jeopardise the operations. The operations which started yesterday has begun to yield positive results with the arrest of some persons.

Aside the road blocks and security checkpoints, the soldiers are also carrying out snap check in different parts of the city.

A top military source said the deployment became necessary to forestall any attack on the city.

“You know we are in an election year and criminals would do anything to want to  destabilise the relative peace in the  nation’s capital with their evil activities which they have been trying for sometime without success. We’re deploying to the communities located along the Abuja/Lokoja highways because there are intelligence that these criminals are trying to establish their bases after excessive bombings of their enclaves in the North East and North West.

“The criminals are taking advantage of these rural communities in the FCT to establish an attack and kidnap innocent persons. For sometime, cases of kidnapping have been rife in the FCT, especially in the communities located along the Abuja/Lokoja highways. That necessitated the deployment of troops.”

Security agencies have also begun raids of known criminal hotspots in the FCT. The joint security team is said to be concentrating on motor parks, markets, satellite towns, mechanic villages, brothels and other busy spots to fish out criminals.

“You find them in their large numbers in places like Zuba, Madalla, Gwagwalada, Bwari, Nyayan, Kugbo, Gwagwa, Mpape, Karmo, Kubwa  kuje, Masaka, Apo, Masaka, Mpape, Gudu and all the major markets and they could used by their sponsors to carry out their evil plans.”

Director Army Public Relations, Brigadier General Onyema Nwachukwu, could not be reached for comment on the state of alert of the soldiers around Abuja.

Meanwhile reports on the ambush of the valiant men of the Nigerian Army that occurred on Monday said that 17 soldiers were actually killed in the attack carried out by the suspected terrorists, Vanguard reported on Tuesday.

“40 fatally wounded soldiers were brought in to the 44 Army Reference Hospital, Kaduna, from where 17 of them were confirmed dead,” he said.

Another source in Birnin Gwari said  apart from the soldiers, three civilians were killed.

“The two civilians were members of a vigilante group, while one was a traveller,” he said.

Attempts to confirm the casualty figures from military authorities in Kaduna and from the state police command were not successful.

However, journalists gathered that the terrorists were moving from Niger State to Zamfara State, through their usual route in the Birnin-Gwari area.

“The attack took place at about 5p.m., on Monday. The fierce gun battle lasted several hours.

“The soldiers were overpowered by the terrorists who came in large number on motorbikes.

“The terrorists burnt down three military armoured vehicles, stole armament and their other properties,” the source said.

The chairman of the Birnin Gwari Emirate Progressive Union, Ishaq Usman Kasai, confirmed the death of the vigilantes during the attack.

“The terrorists suspected to be members of the Ansaru, where believed to be coming from Niger State, when they attacked the military base.

“We had to run and seek refuge elsewhere. Most of the residents slept outside Birnin Gwari town,” he said.

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