Baga, the headquarters of the Multi National joint Task Force, was captured by the insurgents in January but was recaptured by the Special Forces on Saturday.
The Director of Defence Information, Maj. Gen. Chris Olukolade, who stated this in a statement on Monday, did not give the exact number of the terrorists arrested.
Olukolade had said in an earlier statement on Sunday that troops were screening a group of people mostly women in Baga to ascertain their true identities and to find out whether they were supporters of the deadly sect or not.
The Defence spokesman said that the troops had arrested many terrorists hiding in Baga apart from those captured during the battle to liberate the town.
Olukolade, who also said that several arms and bombs hidden at some locations within Baga had been recovered, stated that those in custody were being interrogated.
He said, “The cordon and search in Baga has revealed some terrorists disguising as women.
“The searches are also yielding more discoveries of arms especially bombs hidden in various locations, especially Baga town.
“Apart from those captured in the course of fighting, many terrorists hiding in the town are being arrested and troops are still busy interrogating the suspects.
“In furtherance of the mission to clear terrorists from all their enclaves by the military, the Nigerian Air Force has stepped up its air bombardments of identified targets in Gwoza, Bama and Sambisa forest, preparatory to other phases of the mission.
“The air strikes have been highly successful as they achieved the aims, hitting vital targets with required precision. Terrorists are now in disarray as they scamper to escape from the impact of air bombardment of their locations in the forest.”
He said that the military was now preoccupied with the consolidation of the liberated areas to pave the way for the return of the residents after flushing out the terrorists from Baga.
Source: Punch
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