Tinubu Meets Chiefs as Military Intensifies
By Wellington Jopelo
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu held a closed-door meeting with the Service Chiefs at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa, Abuja, amid growing national security concerns. The meeting, which took place behind closed doors, underscored the administration’s continued focus on strengthening Nigeria’s security architecture.
The session commenced at about 6:01 p.m. local time, with the Service Chiefs arriving at the Villa forecourt before being ushered into the President’s office. Although details of the discussions were not officially disclosed, the timing of the engagement has drawn significant attention.
The meeting marked President Tinubu’s first formal engagement with the military high command since the swearing-in of General Christopher Musa (retd.) as the new Minister of Defence on December 4, 2025. The development signals a renewed coordination between the presidency and top military leadership.
The engagement comes against the backdrop of mounting security challenges across the country, including the continued captivity of 115 students abducted from a Catholic boarding school in November. It also coincides with the recent approval by the Nigerian Senate for the deployment of troops to the Republic of Benin following an attempted coup in the neighbouring country.
As the high-level talks took place in Abuja, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) intensified its offensive against terrorist enclaves in the North-East. On December 14, 2025, the Air Component of Joint Task Force Operation HADIN KAI conducted precision air interdiction missions at Dabar Masara, a known terrorist stronghold in the Southern Tumbuns of Borno State.
The operation targeted a terrorist workshop and several vehicles concealed under dense vegetation, identified as an active logistics hub used by insurgents. According to the Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, post-strike assessments confirmed the destruction of the vehicles and the neutralisation of terrorist elements at the location.
Ejodame emphasised that the NAF’s intelligence-driven precision air operations remain critical to degrading terrorist networks and enhancing security across the North-East. He noted that the Southern Tumbuns, a vast marshland around Lake Chad, has long served as a major hideout for terrorist groups.
Beyond the North-East, troops of the Joint Task Force Operation Enduring Peace recorded significant successes in Kaduna and Plateau states. According to the JTF spokesman, Major Samson Zhakom, a series of coordinated operations conducted between December 11 and 13, 2025, led to the neutralisation of several kidnappers and the rescue of multiple abducted victims.
In Kaduna State, troops carried out clearance operations in Dangoma and Godogodo villages of Jema’a Local Government Area on December 11, neutralising three notorious kidnappers while others fled. A day later, a covert operation in Plateau State led to the neutralisation of a notorious kidnapper and gunrunner linked to multiple crimes in Bassa and Jos North LGAs, with arms, ammunition, and cash recovered.
On December 13, troops foiled an imminent attack at Gidan-Saki Village in Zangon Kataf LGA, Kaduna State, forcing the criminals to abandon their mission. That same day, an ambush operation in Jengre, Plateau State, following the kidnapping of four persons in Rimi Village, resulted in the successful rescue of all victims and the recovery of an AK-47 rifle, ammunition, and other items.
Major Zhakom reaffirmed the commitment of the Joint Task Force to sustaining pressure on criminal elements and ensuring the safety of citizens across operational areas. The combined military actions, alongside President Tinubu’s engagement with security chiefs, highlight the federal government’s intensified efforts to tackle insecurity, rescue abducted citizens, and dismantle terrorist and criminal networks nationwide.