...The army said the developments had “significantly degraded” the group’s operational capabilities,
ABUJA, NIGERIA- The iNews Times | The Nigerian army has said security in the South-East has improved considerably following sustained operations by the army and the imprisonment of separatist leaders, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and Simon Ekpa.
Speaking on the development, Major General Michael Onoja said the army had recorded a significant reduction in crime and other criminal activities across the region over the past year due to intensified operations in the South-Eastern states and recent court decisions affecting the group’s leadership.
According to him, the jailing of Simon Ekpa by the Government of Finland and the continued detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu in Abuja have weakened the group’s command structure, a development the army said has reduced its capacity to coordinate and execute attacks.
Onoja noted that the military had observed that criminal elements previously relied on attacks against lightly manned checkpoints and security outposts to cause instability in the region.
He explained that such attacks often resulted in the killing of security personnel, with weapons seized and later deployed for further violent activities, adding that the military has since curtailed such operations through sustained pressure.
The military maintained that ongoing operations would be sustained to consolidate recent gains, protect lives and property, and prevent the regrouping of criminal elements in the South-East.
