2 weeks ago
Nigerian military personnel operating under Operation HADIN KAI have apprehended two individuals suspected of collaborating with the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) in Borno State.
The development was announced in a social media post on X by counter-terrorism specialist Zagazola Makama. According to Makama, the suspects were caught during a routine stop-and-search action along the Mandaragirau-Sabon Gari Road.
The military intercepted the two suspects, identified as 20-year-old Adamu Abdullahi and 18-year-old Buba Ibrahim, at approximately 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, August 9. During the interception, troops retrieved N131,300 in cash from the possession of the two individuals.
While the detained men asserted that they work as herders, authorities arrested them on suspicion of assisting terrorist actors and participating in cattle rustling. Following their arrest, they were transferred into military custody to undergo additional interrogation and subsequent legal procedures.
Makama explained that these arrests align with broader, continuous security campaigns in the region.
āThe arrest forms part of ongoing efforts by troops of Operation HADIN KAI and Operation DESERT SANITY V to identify and disrupt individuals suspected of providing support to terrorist groups operating across Borno State,ā Makama stated.
āTroops of Operation HADIN KAI have continued to pay particular attention to movements along major routes and rural corridors, where terrorist collaborators and criminal networks may exploit civilian activities to facilitate logistics, intelligence gathering or movement,ā he added.
Why It Matters
Borno State, situated in northeastern Nigeria, has served as the primary epicenter of a violent Islamist insurgency that has destabilized the Lake Chad basin region for over a decade. ISWAP, which split from the extremist group Boko Haram in 2016 and pledged allegiance to the Islamic State
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