DHQ Reacts As US, UK Warn Of Possible Terrorist Attack In Abuja

The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) has asked Nigerians and visitors not to express fear over the possibility of a terrorist attack in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Naija News reports that this assurance follows the alarm raised by both the United States of America and the United Kingdom over the possibility of a terrorist attack in Abuja.

In a statement on Sunday in Abuja, the US Embassy announced that it would offer reduced services until further notice and urged American citizens to avoid non-essential movements.

The statement added that possible targets by the terrorists may include government buildings, places of worship, schools, markets, shopping malls, hotels, bars, restaurants, athletic gatherings, transport terminals, law enforcement facilities, and international organizations.

Also, in an advisory issued on Sunday by its Embassy in Abuja, the United Kingdom advised its citizens in Nigeria to stay alert and consider their movements carefully.

The British government also urged its citizens to follow the local news and the advice of security authorities in order not to be victims of a terrorist attack.

In a chat with The Punch, the Director of Defence Information, Major General Jimmy Akpor, said the intelligence community was aware of the terrorist attack alert and had been addressing it.

He asserted that the military has put mechanisms in place to neutralize any attempt by Bok Haram or ISWAP terrorists to attack the nation’s capital.

Akpor said the military would not want to alarm and inflame the situation, hence the reason it did not inform the citizens of the threat.

He said, “This is not for the press, though the UK and the US embassies have raised the alert. Before it filtered to the embassies, the intelligence community have been on top of the situation.

“The press covering it, however, would only alarm and inflame the situation. It would serve no purpose unless it would stoke fear in the minds of Abuja residents.

“So, without any violent act of terrorism, the terrorists would have yet achieved their objective, because the primary objective of terrorism is to instill fear.”