FG to Embed Journalists With Troops in Security Operations – Defence Minister

The Nigerian government has said it will embed journalists with troops during selected military operations as part of efforts to improve accurate security reporting and deepen public understanding of ongoing counterinsurgency and internal security operations.

Minister of Defence, General Christopher Gwabin Musa (rtd), said this on Thursday at the National Security Summit organised by the Nigeria Union of Journalists, NUJ, in Abuja.

The minister, through his special adviser, Rear Admiral Olusanya Bankole (rtd), said the initiative is targeted at enhancing collaboration between the media and security agencies and improving transparency and public confidence in military operations.

Musa said the media was a critical partner in the management of national security, stressing that modern warfare has now gone beyond the land, air and maritime domains to include the information space.

He believes that effective security outcomes should not only be judged by battlefield success, but by public trust and confidence in security institutions.

“The media is not just an enabler, more than ever before it is a stabiliser of government.

“The defense ministry is exploring options to embed journalists with military units during operations to facilitate more accurate reporting and a better understanding of operational realities,” he said.