The walls are closing in on terrorists — CDS

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen. Christopher Musa, has said that the walls are closing in on those terrorising Nigerians.

Musa made this known at the closing of the 2025 CDS Joint Task Force Commanders Conference with the theme, “Enhancing Jointness Across all Theatres of Operation” on Friday, February 7, 2025 in Abuja.

He said that a notorious bandit leader, Kachana Nafaresh, along several of his fighters were killed during a “crushing” raid in Zamfara forest on Thursday night.

He said that Sani Black’s hideout that had served as a strategic base for banditry was also raided.

According to him, security operations backed by the air component stormed the camp and burned down Sani Black’s house, forcing him to flee.

“In a follow-up operation, troops advanced into Tufan and Mashima villages, further dislodging armed groups and pushing them deeper into the forest.

“In a symbolic strike against banditry, the security forces also returned to the once-cleared area of Bello Turji.

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“The remaining portions of his camp, previously targeted in past offensives, were obliterated in a final suit to erase his presence from the region.

“Reports indicate that both Turji and Sani Black are now in this area desperately seeking escape routes as the pressure mounts,” he said.

The defence chief said the ongoing offensives had shown no signal of a shift in the government’s approach to tackling banditry in Zamfara and wider Nort-West.

He said that the security forces had sent a strong message to all armed groups in the country that the era of impunity was over.

“For years, bandits, terrorists, criminals have exploded the difficult terrain within our country, creating well-fortified hideouts and lodging deadly raids on communities.

“However, with the current operations gaining momentum, the tide appears to be turning as troops starting their drip and air assaults continue precision strikes.

“Special forces from the land, the maritime and the air, are working assiduously to ensure that we secure the entire nation,” he added.

Musa said the conference provided opportunity to generate ideas on how to ensure effectiveness and success of all joint operations.

The Star