Nigerian Military Trains 220 Personnel for COVID-19 Response and other Updates
1. Following our routine update on various operations of the Armed Forces of Nigeria, I will brief you this morning accordingly. It will cover COVID-19, operation Delta Safe, economic sabotage and summary of some other operations.
PREPAREDNESS ON COVID-19 PANDEMIC
2. Recall that at the commencement of Armed Forces of Nigeria’s intervention in the containment of COVID-19 pandemic, it made available 21 medical facilities to be used as isolation and treatment centres. Additionally, 80 medical personnel were concentrated in Abuja and trained on COVID-19 case Management/Infection Prevention and Control (IPC), who were thereafter deployed to different geo-political zones of the Country and the FCT. Due to rising cases of COVID-19 in the country, it was considered necessary to train additional personnel in selected Hospitals across the Armed Forces of Nigeria to boost the capacity of medical personnel in the management of COVID-19.
3. The training package is a Train-the-Trainer, where the beneficiaries are expected to train other personnel at hospitals, related medical facilities and other places of deployment, to enhance capacity building in the management of the pandemic. Consequently, the Armed Forces of Nigeria COVID-19 case management/IPC training will be conducted in 8 designated military centres across the country, namely Headquarters 1 Division Kaduna, 6 Division Port Harcourt, 7 Division Maiduguri, 81 Division Lagos and Headquarters 82 Division Enugu. Others are Headquarters Eastern Naval Command Calabar, Headquarters Tactical Air Command Makurdi and Headquarters Guards Brigade Abuja. At the end of this training the total number will be 300 personnel.
OPERATION DELTA SAFE/ECONOMIC SABOTAGE
4. Under operation Delta Safe Area of responsibility, Nigerian Navy Ship DELTA conducted anti-illegal bunkering/Crude Oil Theft (COT) operations around Ugbodede, Uwakeno, Opumami, Banga Communities and around Escravos general area in Warri South LGA of Delta State. During the operations, the team located and dismantled illegal refining sites and a wooden boat with 3 coolers, 136 dugout pits, 201 surface metal storage tanks and 174 ovens laden with about 14,434 barrels of suspected stolen crude oil as well as 1,385,000 litres of product suspected to be illegally refined AGO. The storage facilities were dismantled. No arrest was made as operators of the illegal refining sites fled on sighting the team. Meanwhile, the illegal refining sites have been earmarked for swamp buggy operation.
5. Similarly, on 11 May 20, Forward Operating Base ESCRAVOS intercepted 3 large wooden boats around Madangho and Sara Creek in Warri South LGA of Delta State. The boats were laden with about 12.6 barrels of suspected stolen crude oil and 43,000 litres of products suspected to be illegally refined AGO. Equally, on 12 May 20, the team discovered 7 refining units, 13 metal storage tanks and 4 dugout pits with about 440.3 barrels of stolen crude oil and 180,000 litres of products suspected to be illegally refined AGO. The boats, items and products discovered in the course of the operation were impounded.
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6. In the same vein, on 11 May 20, Forward Operating Base IBAKA patrol team around Effiat Waterways intercepted an abandoned wooden boat laden with 310 x 50kg bags of foreign parboiled rice suspected to be smuggled from the Republic of Cameroon. Similarly, on 14 May 20, the Base patrol team intercepted an abandoned medium size wooden boat laden with about 67 drums of products suspected to be PMS around Enwang Creek. The seized bags of foreign parboiled rice, boat and drums of suspected PMS are currently in Forward Operating Base IBAKA custody.
7. In another development, on 15 of May 2020, a Chinese vessel, MV HAILUFANG II was attacked by pirates off the Coast of Cote D’ Ivoire. The pirates took control of the vessel and directed the vessel towards Nigerian Waters. The vessel had 18 crew members comprising Chinese, Ghanaians and Ivorians. The Nigerian Navy was alerted of the pirate attack and immediately, the Nigerian Navy Ship NGURU was dispatched to intercept the vessel. On interception of the vessel at about 140 nautical miles south of Lagos Fairway Buoy, the pirates refused to comply to the orders of the Nigerian Navy Ship, hence the Nigerian Navy had to conduct an opposed boarding of the vessel. All the ship crew were safely rescued, while the 10 pirates were also arrested.
OTHER OPERATIONS
8. Troops of the Armed Forces of Nigeria operating in various theatres across the Country recorded tremendous successes within the week under review. In Operation LAFIYA DOLE, several members of the Boko Haram Terrorists/ISWAP fighters and senior commanders were neutralized and their logistics facilities, gun trucks and other structures destroyed as well as recovery of weapons. These occurred in air strikes and other offensive operations executed across the theatre of operation. Twenty (20) BHT/ISWAP Terrorists were killed and 6 AK-47 rifles, 520 rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition and five 36 Hand Grenades were recovered.
9. In Operation HADARIN DAJI, the Air Component, neutralized 27 armed bandits and destroyed some of their dwellings along the Nahuta-Doumborou Corridor on the border between Katsina and Zamfara States in air strikes. While in Operation WHIRL STROKE, raid operations on bandits’ hideouts in Benue and Nasarawa States led to neutralization of 2 bandits of the notorious Gana’s gang with others fleeing with various degrees of gunshot wounds, including the Gana. Seven members of Bassa militia were arrested in Kpelebewa Village in Nasarawa State. Items recovered in the operations include; 4 locally fabricated machine guns, 3dane-guns, 12 locally-made rifles, cartridge firing pistols and 2 locally fabricated cartridge guns. Other are; 4 revolver pistols, 2 cartridge pistols, 58 rounds of 9mm ammunition, 57 x 7.62mm Special Ammunition, 2 motorcycles, 2 camouflage, a generator set and a Bag of Gunpowder as well as assorted charms among others items. Bandits and militias neutralized within this period stands at 29.
10. The Military High Command congratulates all the gallant troops of the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy, Nigerian Air Force and personnel of other security agencies involved in various operations across the country. Furthermore, the professionalism and dexterity of the Nigerian Navy Ship Nguru is hereby commended. It equally appreciates the general public for providing credible information that facilitated the success of various operations. The troops are encouraged to remain focused on eliminating the enemies of the country, while the general public is requested to continue to provide credible information in furtherance of our national security.
JOHN ENENCHE
Major General
Coordinator
Defence Media Operations
21 May 2020
