Troops foil terrorist attack on Benue Yam Market, neutralise two

Troops of Operation WHIRL STROKE, OPWS, in collaboration with operatives of the Benue State Civil Protection Guard, have foiled a terrorist attack on Tor Donga Yam Market in Benue State, neutralising two suspected terrorists and recovering arms and ammunition.

This was made known in a post on X by Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency and security expert in the Lake Chad region.

Zagazola said the troops responded swiftly to a distress call on Sunday while conducting fighting and confidence-building patrols around the market.

He said upon arrival, the troops made contact with the terrorists and engaged them in a fierce gun battle.

According to him, during the encounter, two suspected terrorists, identified as Dantaraba and Golozo, were neutralised, while others fled the scene with varying degrees of injuries.

Items recovered from the suspects included one AK-47 rifle, one AK-47 magazine, one damaged pistol, one pistol magazine, six rounds of 7.62mm NATO ammunition, nine rounds of 9mm pistol ammunition, one ATM card, one Moniepoint ATM card and other sundry items.

The security expert noted that the timely intervention of the troops prevented what could have resulted in significant civilian casualties and disruption of commercial activities at the popular Tor Donga Yam Market.

“The successful operation also ensured that traders and residents continued their activities without fear of terrorist attacks,” he said.