DHB-NEWS: Many feared dead As Military Bombards Lagos & Ogun Creeks

Scores of militants have been reportedly killed in a joint military operation code-named “Operation Awatse” launched in the Arepo area of Ogun State and some parts of Lagos. The operation is to flush out the suspected militants that have been terrorising residents in the area.

There has been a lot of commotion. The Nigerian Air Force bombarded Fatola, in Arepo, which is the base of the militants, a resident confirmed. They are shelling the place with fighter jets. Some soldiers also surrounded the area to make sure that if any of the militants should run out, they would be gunned down. Another resident of Imushin area of Ogun state told Punch that the attack started sometime around 6pm on Thursday evening.

“An aircraft had actually been surveying the creek for the past three days. But a second one joined this evening around 6pm. All we heard was a sudden bomb blast released from the second aircraft. “But it appeared that some of the militants had fled into the bush. There are four major bases of the militants in the creek and they are led by two men- OC and Agbala. If the military can get these two people, then they would have succeeded in clipping the wings of the militants,” the resident said. The Director, Defence Information, Brig.-Gen. Rabe Abubakar also confirmed the operation, adding that it is a routine operation for the purpose of denying the vandals and other criminal elements from causing terror in the area.

Abubakar added, “The operation was initiated by the defence headquarters to dominate the area with a view to flushing out all manners of criminals including militants and saboteurs. The operation involved the joint forces of the navy and army and it has been successful.”

According to the Lagos Police Command’s Spokesperson, SP Dolapo Badmos: “The Nigerian military and policemen from the Lagos and Ogun commands are part of the operation. We are sweeping through the waterways where we share boundaries to end the activities of the militants. It is a continuous exercise and we cannot tell the number of casualties.”