By Odili Christel
As part of the final offensive military campaign against the Boko Haram insurgents in the Northeast, the Nigerian Air Force has launched a new phase of the
Air Component Code named “Operation Forest Storm.” The latest offensive action was a special operation design to stamp out some pinpoints element of the insurgents in the Southern axis of the Northeast.
Speaking to newsmen during the launching of the operation in Yola, Adamawa state, the Chief of Training and Operation of Nigeria Air Force, Air Vice Marshal Abdullahi Iya revealed that after the conduct of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions over the entire theatre of operation over considerable period, the NAF identified noticed some insurgents operating in the south that required special operation to stamp them out.
According to Air Vice Marshal Abdullahi, “from time to time, we conduct special operations to take care of some immediate opportunity that comes. This happen after series of surveillance and carefully selected our targets, analyse the target and determine the mood of attack as well as the suitable weapons in order to avoid hitting wrong target or any collateral damage”.
He however appealed to the civilian population not to panic but to go about their normal activities noting that the operation was carefully planned and “it is a 2 to 3days operations, though the Nigeria Air Force made contingency for 7 days”.