Nigerian military says it has arrested a number of people in the country’s embattled northeastern state of Yobe, who were purportedly transporting fuel and to Boko Haram Takfiri militants.

"Following...directives to troops in the northeast for a painstaking search of motorists and cargoes, troops of the 3 Division Nigerian army have intercepted and arrested some kingpins and foot soldiers of suppliers of Boko Haram terrorists with hard drugs and other stimulants," the army said in a statement released on Tuesday.

It added that the seizure was made on Tuesday in an area located between the towns of Depchi and Gaidam, 70 kilometers (43 miles) south of the state capital, Damaturu.

The statement, however, did not say how many people were arrested in the operation.

Also on Tuesday, Nigeria’s military imposed a ban on the use of horses in the country’s northeastern state of Borno in a bid to stop deadly raids by Boko Haram terrorists.



[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"] Rescuers work at the scene of an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) blast at Gomboru market in Maiduguri, Borno State in northeastern Nigeria on July 31, 2015. (© AFP)[/caption]

Colonel Tukur Gusau, the military spokesman for Borno, said the measure was taken in order to prevent militant attacks against remote communities across the region.

“Military authorities have banned the use of horses in the entire Borno state to stave off Boko Haram terrorist attacks,” Gusau noted.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, who came to power in late May, replaced the heads of the army, navy, and air force as well as the chief of defense staff in an effort to re-energize the fight against Boko Haram.



[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="555"] Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari speaks at the United States Institute of Peace in Washington DC, the United States, on July 22, 2015. (© AFP)[/caption]

The terrorist group has since stepped up its attacks. According to an AFP tally, bombings and a wave of raids have left at least 1,000 people dead in Nigeria in less than three months.

The Boko Haram militancy began in 2009, when the terrorist group started an armed rebellion against the government. Latest figures show about 20,000 people have been killed since then.

By Press TV