The Nigerian military has reported a notable improvement in security across the South-East, attributing the progress to intensified military operations and the incarceration of separatist leaders Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and Simon Ekpa.
Major General Michael Onoja highlighted that criminal activities across the region have declined over the past year due to sustained troop deployments in South-Eastern states and recent judicial actions targeting the group’s leadership.
He noted that the imprisonment of Simon Ekpa by the Finnish government, alongside Mazi Nnamdi Kanu’s ongoing detention in Abuja, has significantly weakened the group’s operational capacity, limiting its ability to coordinate and execute attacks.
“Crimes and other criminal activities have significantly decreased during the year following troops’ intensified operations across the South-Eastern states, as well as the recent court rulings against their leader, Simon Ekpa, who was jailed by the Government of the Republic of Finland, and Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.,” Onoja said.
He further stated that these developments have “substantially degraded the group’s capabilities,” explaining that the extremists had previously targeted lightly manned checkpoints and security posts.
Onoja added that such attacks often led to the deaths of security personnel, with seized weapons later used in further terror activities across the region.
The military affirmed that operations would continue to consolidate recent gains, safeguard lives and property, and prevent any resurgence of criminal elements in the South-East.
