Metro
Killing spree as gunmen kill 3 soldiers in Bayelsa
The resurgence of militancy in the Niger Delta assumed another dimension on Tuesday, as three soldiers attached to the Joint Task Force in the Niger Delta, Operation Pulo Shield, were killed by suspected militants in the Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.
According to reports, the gunmen, who operated on a speedboat, allegedly overran a military outpost at Foropa and gunned down the three soldiers around 1:30am on Tuesday.
The militants were said to have carted away two AK47 riffles, a General Purpose Machine Gun and other ammunition from the Foropa checkpoint after killing the soldiers.
Reports also has it that residents of Foropa are already fleeing the community for fear of military invasion and indiscriminate arrest of innocent persons, just as the remains of the slained soldiers were said to have been evacuated before dawn.
Read also: Defence HQ denies granting Boko Haram members amnesty
According to a security source, the militants struck at about 1:30am in a surprise attack, adding that the soldiers could have been sleeping when the incident occurred.
The source said: “These militants attacked the security agents ostensibly to steal their arms and ammunition. Criminally-minded youths are stockpiling arms again. This calls for vigilance among security operatives”.
It would be recalled that there has been a resurgence of militant activities in the Niger Delta with the emergence of the Niger Delta Avengers, that has claimed responsibility for recent attacks on oil and gas facilities in the region.
President Muhammadu Buhari has also given a matching order to security agencies to fish out those behind the attacks that has adversely affected Nigeria’s crude oil output, dragging it to the lowest point in 22 years.
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