The speed at which the raid was thrown together on Wednesday 16th November was as impressive as the value of the loot ended up being. I think expectations were low as the group of around seven breached the “medium sized” base (built on a swamp) which didn’t have any rooms above the ground floor. Heavy explosives were used to quickly get into the base, which resulted in an injury, but the team pressed on. The mood was that the bandits who owned the base deserved to get raided, although they didn’t appear active at the time.
There was still conflict, as some well-armed gunmen gradually closed in towards the base from multiple directions, wielding assault rifles, sub-machgine-guns, machine-guns, and a sniper rifle. The Government forces were prepared for such a battle, which was fought at ranges so close that grenades were thrown at the gunmen. Barricades had been placed, but Government forces having captured the base then made a call to garrison it as an advantage in what developed into a battle.
Now switching from the role of raiders to defenders, the Government squad briefly brought the base sentry guns back online, which may have helped keep the bandits from closing in, but not all the Goverment soldiers anticipated this development and simply hadn’t authorized themselves on the guns or checked what their field of fire was. The guns were soon disabled again to prevent friendly fire, but effective fire was still given by the soldiers themselves from ontop of the base roof.
The loot inside this temporary Government-captured outpost was so rich that it was used to help defend it as ammunition and medical items were spent. The battle had lasted for much of one day, before pausing for the night, leading to another prolonged wave where the bandits again tried to counter-raid. Eventually the bandits had all been killed, as they tried to push forward between the barricades that were set as cover against them, but offered them little advantage against fire from the base itself in the end.
The loot was moved out, which included so many rifles that Government members struggled to fit them all into their buildings, and discussed selling them (or giving them away). This was ontop of the guns taken from the killed gunmen. The battle had been fierce against aggressive bandits; some members had been injured, but quick-thinking and teamwork helped secure it as a Government victory. I find there’s usually a mishap or two in any significant endeavor, and so determination is one of the essential things to bring on the journey.