Many citizens and security experts have expressed concern over the killing of security operatives by criminals and called for action to stem the tide.
They specifically made case for military operatives who were killed in the line of duty while carrying out internal security.
No fewer than 183 personnel of the Nigerian military have paid the supreme price within six months – January to June, 2021 – in the line of their duties, findings by Daily Trust have shown.
Thousands of military operatives drawn from the army, navy and air force have been deployed to more than 30 states in the country.
According to reported cases in the media, the officers were killed by bandits, hoodlums, gunmen, Boko Haram terrorists, cultists, armed robbers, among others.
Available information showed that they were killed in different parts of the country, but a large percentage of the cases were recorded in the northern part, with North-East topping the chat.
States where soldiers have been killed include Borno, Yobe, Jigawa, Kaduna, Niger, Nasarawa, Benue, Ebonyi, Enugu, Delta, Cross River, Rivers and Bayelsa.
Daily Trust reports that while soldiers were expected to protect the territorial integrity of Nigeria against external aggression, many of them have been deployed to tame internal threats.
The troops support sister agencies like the police, civil defence, Customs and Immigrations in some instances even as they take over the whole operation in some places.
Some Nigerians who spoke to our correspondents said all security operatives in Nigeria deserve empathy and support.
Our findings showed that Boko Haram terrorists and members of the Islamic State West, Africa Province (ISWAP) killed 114 gallant troops while 69 were killed in other circumstances.
For instance, 36 officers were killed on April 24 in Mainok, Borno State during an ambush on a military super camp.
In another case, at least seven soldiers of the Nigerian Army died instantly after an ambush in northern part of Borno while four others sustained injuries.
Among the injured was Colonel Husseini Samaila Sankara, who also died while receiving treatment.
He was the latest to be buried in Abuja on Thursday.
Sankara, who was laid to rest at the Guards Brigade cemetery amid tears and emotions, died on July 1, 2021, on May 30, 2021.
The late officer was on his way from Marte, a town in Borno State, to the state capital, Maiduguri, when their gun truck ran into the explosive.
Another army major was killed in Jigawa State by armed robbers few days ago while on his way to Kano from Maiduguri.
On Thursday, Governor Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State said seven soldiers lost their lives while repelling a bandits’ attack in his state on Tuesday.
The governor said this when he visited five soldiers injured in the attack around Marke village.
They are receiving treatment at Sir Yahaya Memorial Hospital, Birnin Kebbi.In the South East and South South, members of the Eastern Security Network (ESN), the armed wing of the outlawed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) have also killed some soldiers. (DailyTrust)