The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has destroyed an Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) factory located in the Mandara Mountains of Borno State.
According to Air Vice Marshal Edward Gabkwet, Director of Public Relations and Information for the NAF, the airstrike was conducted on August 2, 2024, in response to recent attacks on innocent civilians in the region. Gabkwet stated that intelligence reports indicated the presence of a possible IED factory and storage area for other logistics at the location, which had been under surveillance for weeks.
The NAF had been tracking the IED factory’s relocation from Gwoza to the Timbuktu Triangle in Sambisa Forest and finally to Grazah in the Mandara Hills. Gwabkwet said the relocations were due to the intense pressure on the terrorists from the combined efforts of the security apparatus of Operation Hadin Kai.
“The IED factory location at Grazah had been under surveillance for weeks with various installations observed and activities of armed terrorists in the area found to be consistent with those protecting a strategic location,” the NAF spokesperson stated.
The airstrike resulted in the effective destruction of the suspected IED factory, two-gun trucks, and the decimation of several terrorists. The aftermath of the strike was marked by a thick cloud of smoke, indicating the success of the operation.
—Ezinwanne Onwuka reports for TruthNigeria from Abuja.
