We won't bombard civilian locations in Sambisa - Air Force

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) on Saturday assured that its ongoing strike mission in Sambisa forest would not affect civilian targets.

Air Commodore Isiaka Amao, Air Component Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, gave this assurance in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Maiduguri.

Amao explained that the air force conducted series of intelligence gathering on the area before embarking on the mission.

According to him, we are on a mission to wipe out the Boko Haram terrorists from their Sambisa forest hideout.

‘’We are also aware that the terrorists usually keep abducted women and children among them; so we carry out series of intelligence-gathering before striking at any target in the hideout.

``We do not carry out strikes in women and children locations because we know that they are innocent persons kept by force by the terrorists.

``Our job is to degrade the terrorists and rescue vulnerable persons forcefully abducted in their hideout,'' he said.

Amao said that the air force had continued to intensify its effort in support of the ground troops and had conducted no fewer than 40 intervention missions, with over 80 per cent success in the forest.