Nigerian Army and DSS seize weapons, foil ESN kidnapping plot.

A joint Nigerian security operation in Enugu State has recovered a significant cache of weapons, including a rocket launcher, and arrested several suspects, foiling what officials described as a major kidnapping plot targeting students and security checkpoints. The operation, conducted by troops from the Nigerian Army's 82 Division and operatives from the Department of State Services (DSS), took place on Tuesday and Wednesday, June 9 and 10, 2026, in the Garki and Agbani areas of Enugu.

Acting on intelligence, security forces raided two suspected armories belonging to the outlawed Eastern Security Network (ESN). The first raid on Tuesday in Garki uncovered a rocket launcher, two rocket-propelled grenade warheads, three RPG chargers, three AK-47 rifles, six magazines, two handheld grenades, a teargas gun, and over 700 rounds of assorted 7.62mm ammunition. A follow-up raid on Wednesday in Agbani yielded eight more AK-47 rifles, a smoke grenade launcher, 12 magazines, additional teargas canisters, and 323 rounds of ammunition.

Authorities stated that intelligence indicated the ESN members planned to use the weapons to launch attacks on security checkpoints and to kidnap women,...