Military Intensifies Offensive, Recovers Weapons, Frees 283 Kidnap Victims

The Nigerian Army’s Headquarters 1 Brigade has recorded significant gains in its ongoing counter-banditry operations in Zamfara State, neutralising 85 suspected bandits, rescuing 283 kidnapped victims, and recovering a large cache of arms, ammunition and motorcycles used by criminal groups.

The Brigade Commander, Brigadier General Mustapha Jimoh, disclosed the achievements during an operational briefing, attributing the successes to sustained intelligence-driven kinetic and non-kinetic operations across the Brigade’s Area of Responsibility.
Jimoh said the operations had weakened the operational capacity of armed groups, improved security for residents, farmers and commuters, and led to the destruction of several terrorist camps, logistics bases and command hideouts. He disclosed that troops recovered 46 AK-47 rifles, one PKT machine gun, two General Purpose Machine Guns, three Rocket-Propelled Grenade launchers, six locally fabricated rifles, large quantities of ammunition and 144 motorcycles allegedly used by the criminal groups. He added that the rescued victims included women, children, students and other civilians, while recovered rustled livestock had been returned to their owners.
The Brigade Commander explained that troops sustained area domination through offensive clearance operations, fighting patrols, ambushes, long-range patrols, cordon-and-search missions and rapid response operations across identified flashpoints. Working alongside other security agencies and relevant stakeholders, the Brigade intensified intelligence-led efforts to dismantle terrorist and bandit networks, recover illegal weapons and restore civil authority in affected communities.
Jimoh described Zamfara as one of Nigeria’s major security flashpoints due to its vast forests and difficult terrain, noting that criminal groups had evolved from cattle rustling into organised networks involved in kidnapping, attacks on communities and assaults on security personnel. He assured that the Brigade would sustain offensive operations and strengthen collaboration with security agencies and local communities to achieve lasting peace in Zamfara and Kebbi states, reaffirming the Nigerian Army’s commitment to protecting lives, restoring civil authority and creating a secure environment for socio-economic development.