Nineteen persons, comprising terrorist fighters, women and children, who surrendered to troops in three local government areas of Borno State in the past week attributed their action to hunger, military offensives and clashes among terrorist factions.

“The surrendered persons cited food shortages, sustained military pressure and internal clashes among terrorist factions as reasons for their surrender,” the Director Defence Media Operations (DMO), Maj-Gen. Michael Onoja, disclosed.

He disclosed that “all the 19 persons and 40 other rescued kidnapped victims have been screened and handed over to the appropriate authorities for further action.”

In first quarter of 2026, 197 insurgents surrendered, in second quarter, 39 surrendered, while in July alone, 57 handed themselves over to troops, with all of them citing military pressure for their actions.

The Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK) had said sustained offensive on terrorists’ positions and enclaves triggered a 213 per cent rise in surrendering of insurgents and their families in the first week of August in the North East without providing figure.

Speaking during the weekly briefing on military offensives nationwide between August 7 and August 13, 2026, Onoja said the successes recorded by troops so far underscored the progressive degradation of terrorist operational capacity in the Lake Chad Basin as well as Adamawa and Borno States.

He said that 68 terrorists/criminal elements were neutralised, while 24 others were arrested during the period.

The DMO added that the Air Component sustained combat air support across the various theatres of operation, conducting precision air strikes and armed reconnaissance missions to degrade terrorist mobility, disrupt cattle rustling and neutralise terrorist elements, particularly in Niger State.

“On 9 August 2026, the Air Component conducted a successful armed reconnaissance mission over the Sangeko and Baba-Doka areas in Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State following reports of a large concentration of terrorists, many of whom were mounted on motorcycles.

“The aircraft engaged the terrorists with rockets and cannon fire, effectively disrupting their movement and activities. Initial reports indicated the recovery of approximately 120 bodies and about 300 motorcycles at the location. Monitoring of the area is ongoing to further assess the outcome of the operation.”

Onoja disclosed that two suspected foreign terrorists arrested at Zurmi in Zamfara State, during the period were believed to be Improvised Explosive Device (IED) experts.

He said foreign camouflage items, mobile phones and identification documents were recovered from another suspect arrested at Kadage in Giwa Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

“The suspect was subsequently handed over to the Department of State Services for further action.”

The DMO said that a total of 129,000 suspected stolen petroleum products, including crude oil and illegally Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) were recovered from the Niger Delta by troops of Operation Delta Safe under Operation Delta Sentinel.

He said the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, commended troops for the commitment demonstrated across all theatres of operation during the period, as well as the Department of State Services, the Nigeria Police Force, local security groups and other security agencies whose collaboration with troops continues to yield positive results in the fight against terrorism, kidnapping, and other forms of criminality. (The Guardian)

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