We noticed use of armed drones by terrorists in November 2024 – Nigerian Military

The Nigerian Military has confirmed that terrorists have adopted the use of armed drones to launch attacks in Borno State.

AE Abubakar, the Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, while speaking at a press briefing in Maiduguri, said there has been a series of coordinated attacks on military bases in Borno.

Also stating that the military is quite resolute in its operations and efforts to end insurgency, Abubakar said attempted attacks on Dikwa and Gajiram areas of the state were successfully repelled by troops.

Listing some of the attacks by terrorists in the state, Abubakar said that in Rann, three military bases came under insurgents’ attacks.

He noted that unfortunately, four soldiers died in the Rann clash.

“In the last week alone, over 20 terrorists have been neutralised and arms and ammunition recovered, even as we continue to conduct operations on multiple fronts as we speak,” Abubakar said.

Reeling out some of the successes of the military, he said citizens have returned to their communities while economic activities have taken the centre stage in some of the villages and local government areas.

However, addressing the challenges in the Sahel region, Abubakar said the weakened fight against the insurgents is affecting the efforts by the Nigerian military.

“Two years ago, we were ready to say that the conflict was over, but the deterioration in security among Sahel States has also affected us. In spite of this progress, the terrorists have also adapted. This is possible due to the relative ease with which they can access technology.

“For instance, since November of last year, we noticed the introduction of the use of armed drones to carry out attacks. Like you would find in Israel or Ukraine, these drones are difficult to detect by conventional radar detection,” Abubakar noted.

He added that efforts are being put together to restrategise and reorganise the onslaught against the terrorists by the commands.