BY EDMOND ODOK – With the worrying surge in terrorists and banditry attacks across the country, President Bola Tinubu on Thursday held a closed-door meeting with top security officials, including the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Tunji Disu to chart the best way forward.
In a down-to-earth engagement that reported lasted about two hours, the meeting which took place at the State House, Abuja began in the afternoon after the security chiefs arrived quietly and ended at about 5:10 p.m.
Presence at the presidential meeting were Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (rtd); National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu; Director-General, Department of State Services (DSS), Adeola Ajayi; and the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Olufemi Oluyede.
Also in attendance at the meeting which the presidency had not released any detail as of the time of this report, were the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu; Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Kelvin Aneke; and Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Idi Abbas.
But according to competent insider sources, the meeting was clearly meant to address “the severe surge in terror attacks, characterized by a renewed wave of sophisticated assaults targeting military installations in the North-East that have resulted in significant casualties among the nation’s security forces”
In this month alone, there has been coordinated assaults launched by the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and Boko Haram insurgents on military bases in Borno and Yobe states, including sites in Kukawa, Konduga, Mainok, Jakana, Goniri, and Marte. The raid recorded high-ranking casualties with several top officers, including Lt Col Umar Faru and Lt Col S.I. Iliyasu, killed in these attacks while defending their positions.
On Monday, March 9, 2026, tragedy struck as a Commanding Officer of the Nigerian Army was killed after suspected fighters of the ISWAP attacked a military base in Kukawa, Borno State. The incident occurred about a week after suspected Boko Haram and ISWAP fighters attempted to storm military positions in Ngoshe, in Gwoza Local Government Area of the state.
However, the next day, Tuesday, March 10, 2026, Nigerian troops courageously repelled an early-morning assault by suspected ISWAP fighters on a military base in Doron Baga, located in Kukawa LGA of Borno.
There has been disturbing reports about the deployment of advanced weapons by the terrorists and bandits. Concerned military sources hinted that the criminal elements have increasingly been utilizing armed drones, anti-aircraft guns, and heavy weaponry, which has allowed them to briefly overrun military positions and destroy armored vehicles.
Response from the military high command has led to emergency meetings with the Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (rtd), summoning and holding a meeting with top military chiefs on the need to overhaul operational tactics, that shift focus from a reactive to a proactive strategy to counter the renewed insurgent pressure.
