Military Commences on Onslaught Against N/Delta Militants

•Kill 5 militants, arrests 23 suspects

Senator Iroegbu in Abuja

The Nigerian military has commenced the planned onslaught against the Niger Delta militants to ride the region of all criminal activities, militancy and sabotage of the nation’s economic infrastructures.

This is coming after the Nigerian Army amassed troops, arms and ammunition for the special exercise code-named Crocodile Smile in support of the larger Operation Delta Safe within the nine states of the region.

The Director of Army Public Relations (DAPR), Col. Sani Usman, in a statement on Saturday, said: “The 133 Special Forces Battalion of Nigerian Army troops have carried out a precursor operation to Exercise ‘Crocodile Smile’ aimed at getting rid of all forms of criminal activities in the Niger Delta geo-political region of Nigeria”.

Usman said that in the course of the operation, “five militants that attacked the troops were killed in action, while numerous others were injured and 23 suspects were arrested”.

He noted that the operations which was conducted on Friday, was carried out by the Special Forces at the militants camps.

He listed the items recovered from the camps to include two AK-47 rifles, 11 pump action guns, a locally made revolver pistol, 292 cartridges of live ammunition, 199 rounds of AK-47 rifle ammunition, four electricity generating sets and a camp gas cooker.

He said the troops also recovered an abandoned engine boat left by the fleeing criminals.