President Muhammadu Buhari has declared Zamfara a ‘no-fly zone’ and banned all mining activities in the state.
The National Security Adviser, Major General Babagana Monguno (rtd), who announced this on Tuesday in Abuja, explained that it was part of measures to tackle the security challenges witnessed in the north-western state.
He made the disclosure to State House correspondents after a five-hour National Security Council meeting presided over by the President at the Presidential Villa in the nation’s capital.
A no-fly zone, also known as a no-flight zone, or air exclusion zone, is a territory or area established by a military power over which certain aircraft are not permitted to fly.
General Monguno also stated that all non-state actors have been placed under surveillance as the Federal Government will not hesitate to use kinetic means to restore normalcy in the country.
The NSA said the country’s defence and intelligence organization have been put on alert and charged not to allow the country to slide into a state of anarchy.
Monguno also said the President, in the meeting, gave a marching order to the new service chiefs to reclaim all areas under the control of bandits, insurgents, and kidnappers.
President Buhari had earlier in February held a meeting with Zamfara State Governor Mohammed Mattawalle at the State House in Abuja.
The governor after the meeting told journalists at the presidential villa that he was summoned by the President to brief him on the security situation in his state.
Mattawalle added that 358 special police forces have been deployed by the Federal Government to the state to tackle banditry.
