Bandits didn’t shut down Kaduna Airport; we killed 12 of them – Military
The Kaduna State government and the military authorities has debunked the reports that bandits shut down Kaduna International Airport during the weekend.
The military on Monday said though there was an attack, it occured at six kilometers away from the Airport terminal and outside its parameter fence.
The Military further said that 12 of the bandits were also killed through airstrike.
The State Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, Garrison Commander 1 Division Nigerian Army, Brig-General Uriah Opuene and Air Force Base Commander, Air Commodore, Ademuyiwa Adedoyin, led journalists on an assessment tour of the attack scene.
Speaking at the attack scene, Brig-Gen.Opuene said the Kaduna International Airport is very secure, adding that there are several layers of security at the Airport and that bandits could not have dared to attack it.
He said preliminary investigations have revealed that the bandits were just passing through the back of the Airport towards Riyawa village when they sighted the security man engaged by the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) watching over their metrological equipment around the axis.
Brig-Gen. Opuene said: “As you can see, this place is about six kilometers away from the Airport terminal. The bandits were only passing behind the airport perimeter fence when they saw the security man engage by NAMA and they fired at him. They just took advantage of that to pass a message that they have attacked the airport, not that they had the intention of attacking the Airport.
“There are several layers of security at the Airport, this is the first layer and even this first layer was not breached, because from the moment of hearing that shot, it took our men just about three minutes to get here from the next layer of security.
“On arrival, the bandits were already running away, so we engaged them through the use of ground forces. Then we called for air strike and an helicopter was deployed and from the air report, about 12 of the bandits were killed.
“So, as you can see from the distance, the insinuation outside that the terrorists took over the Airport is not correct. If the terrorists had entered, they would have met us there.”
Also speaking, the NAF Base Commander, Air Commodore Adedoyin said security around the Airport general area has been beefed up since the security of the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) was breached last year, adding that bandits don’t have the audacity to attack Kaduna Airport.
For his part, the Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Aruwan, while assuring that the Airport was safe and secured, said the state government was engaging citizens in communities around the Airport to scale up intelligence gathering.
