Troops Kill ISWAP Second-in-Command, 10 Others in Sambisa Forest

Troops of the Joint Task Force, North East, Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK), have recorded a major operational breakthrough with the killing of a senior Boko Haram/Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) leader, Abu Khalid, identified as the group’s second-in-command in the Sambisa Forest.

Allegedly killed alongside Abu Khalid were 10 other terrorists during a coordinated night operation in Borno State.

The success, according to a statement by the Media Information Officer of OPHK, Lieutenant Colonel Sani Uba, followed a fierce engagement between troops of Sector 1 and terrorists in the Komala general area of Konduga Local Government Area at about 11:00 p.m.

The operation was carried out in collaboration with members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) under Operation Desert Sanity.

Lieutenant Colonel Uba disclosed that Abu Khalid was a high-value target within the terrorist hierarchy, responsible for coordinating operations and logistics across the Sambisa axis.

His neutralisation, he said, represented a significant disruption to the group’s command structure.

The operation came barely 24 hours after troops eliminated another notorious ISWAP commander, Julaibib, during a separate encounter within the Gujba axis of the Timbuktu Triangle.

Military intelligence indicated that the successive losses had thrown terrorist elements in the area into disarray.

Following the Sambisa engagement, troops recovered five AK-47 rifles, magazines, several bicycles, assorted logistics and food items, as well as a large cache of medical supplies. No casualties were recorded among the troops.