Air Components of Operation Hadarin Daji routed armed bandits in air raids in Katsina and Zamfara states between May 20 and 22, killing 135 of the bandits.
The Coordinator, Defence Media Operations, Major General John Enenche, said yesterday that the troops also destroyed several camps of the bandits.
He added that the air strikes were undertaken sequel to intelligence reports as well as series of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions that led to the identification of the camps.
He said the camps included Abu Radde Camps 1 and 2 and Dunya in Jibia and Dan Musa Local Government Areas of Katsina State as well as Hassan Tagwaye Camp, Alhaji Auta Camp and Maikomi in Birnin Magaji and Zurmi LGAs of Zamfara State.
Enenche said the interdiction missions were undertaken by the air component as it dispatched its attack aircraft to the locations in multiple bombing runs, some of which were executed simultaneously.
He said on May 20, at the Abu Radde Camp, a set of huts housing one of the notorious bandit leaders was taken out by air strikes with scores of the bandits killed and a few seen fleeing with gunshot wounds towards the Dumburum Forest. He said similar air raids were executed at Hassan Tagwaye and Alhaji Auta Camps as well as Maikomi with equally devastating effects.
