Nigerian Air Force aircraft struck an Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) hideout in the Sambisa Forest on Saturday, killing nine militants including a senior commander responsible for protecting the group’s leadership, the service said in a statement released Sunday.
Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, the director of public relations and information at NAF headquarters in Abuja, said the operation followed credible intelligence on terrorist movements in the area. A remotely piloted aircraft conducted intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance before tracking a group of militants moving toward a suspected hideout.
After positive identification, NAF aircraft carried out a precision engagement on the location. A subsequent battle damage assessment confirmed the compound was heavily damaged, with nine terrorists killed and several others wounded.
Among those neutralised was Abu Khalid Al Muhajir, described as a prominent ISWAP commander tasked with providing special security escorts for senior members of the group. Ejodame said his elimination represents a significant setback for ISWAP, citing his reported knowledge of routes, terrain and tactical movements linking major terrorist enclaves within the Sambisa Forest and surrounding areas.
Intelligence also indicated that some of the fighters affected by the strike were linked to elements suspected of carrying out a recent ambush of Nigerian troops along the Bita–Yamtage axis in Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State.
The operation underscores the growing effectiveness of the air force’s intelligence-driven campaign, which combines persistent surveillance with precision strikes to detect and neutralise militants before they can regroup. Beyond the immediate casualties, the strike is expected to disrupt ISWAP’s leadership protection arrangements, the movement of high-value personnel, and coordination of activities across its enclaves.
Ejodame reaffirmed the NAF’s commitment to sustaining intelligence-led, precision air operations in close coordination with ground troops to degrade terrorist capabilities and secure communities in the North East.
