Nigerian Army Destroys Criminal Hideouts and Renames Calabar Barracks

Troops of the Nigerian Army have recovered an AK-47 rifle, a Dane gun, and an empty magazine while destroying suspected criminal hideouts during a security operation in the Old Oyo National Park. Conducted on November 7 and 8 by soldiers of Operation IGBO DANU II under the Army's 2 Division in collaboration with hybrid forces, the campaign aims to flush out armed groups and prevent them from utilizing forested areas as safe havens.

During the initial engagement on November 7, troops encountered suspected criminal elements who fled upon seeing the advancing soldiers. A follow-up operation the next day led to the discovery of the body of one of the suspects who had escaped the previous day, alongside the destruction of temporary shelters used as hideouts. The military stated that exploitation of the area remains ongoing to track down other fleeing individuals and prevent them from regrouping.

The security sweep in the national park follows rising concerns regarding criminal groups utilizing the difficult terrain for kidnappings. Earlier this year, 46 pupils and teachers were abducted from three schools in the Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State and held inside the park for 56 days before security forces rescued them in July through an intelligence-led operation. In October, the General Officer Commanding the 2 Division, Major General Auwalu Mahmuda, announced that the military had taken over the entire park as a training ground to deter outlaws.

In a separate operation in Kogi State, Nigerian Army troops arrested a suspected terrorist along with members of his family, as well as a separate suspected kidnapper, in the Lokoja Local Government Area. Operating on intelligence regarding activity in the Agbaja and Kakanda forests, Sector 3 troops deployed at Atsawa apprehended the terrorist suspect and recovered an AK-47 rifle, ammunition, and a communication radio. Approximately an hour later, troops deployed at Jamata arrested an additional kidnapping suspect in the Agbaja Forest, seizing a motorcycle and other items.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Army has honored its late former Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru, by renaming the Akim Barracks, Headquarters 13 Brigade in Calabar, Cross River State, after him. The ceremony on November 10, 2026, was conducted by the incumbent Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, on behalf of President Bola Tinubu.

Lieutenant General Shaibu described the renaming of the facility as a deliberate institutional effort to preserve the memory of distinguished military leaders and reinforce foundational values within the armed forces. Attahiru tragically died alongside other military officers in a plane crash on May 21, 2021, while serving as Chief of Army Staff. Officials including Cross River State Governor's representative Dr. Peter Odey and the late general's widow, Mrs. Fatima Attahiru, attended the ceremony to pay tribute to his leadership, professionalism, and ultimate sacrifice.

In historical reflections related to military figures, former President Olusegun Obasanjo recently discussed his retirement from the Nigerian Army at age 42 and his subsequent transition into farming during the regime of the late General Sani Abacha. Obasanjo recounted rejecting an offer of political asylum from the United States during that era, insisting he had committed no offense, prior to his subsequent arrest and imprisonment.