Troops Kill Five ISWAP Leaders, 70 Terrorists In Lake Chad

Troops of the Nigerian Air Force have killed at least seventy Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters and injured many others.

In a statement issued on Saturday by the NAF spokesman, Edward Gabkwet, the ISWAP terrorists were killed at Tumbun Rego and a logistics camp about two kilometres Northwest of Tumbun Rego, in the Lake Chad region.

Gabkwet said an Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) platform discovered a large number of terrorists in their camps.

He said the operation, which was conducted on April 14, 2022, was carried out by Operation Hadin Kai and Nigerien Air Force under the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF).

Gabkwet disclosed that the airstrike operation led to the elimination of five key ISWAP leaders, including one of the most wanted terrorists, Ibn Usman.

He named the four other slain ISWAP leaders as Hani Abdullahi, Abakar Shuwa, Abu Jibrillah and Abu Ali.

The NAF spokesman, however, disclosed that mop-up operations were conducted on Friday by a Nigerian Army contingent under Operation Lake Sanity.

“Missions over the suspected locations… conducted on 13 April 2022 specifically sighted large number of terrorists, a likely logistics camp.

As a result, they carried out airstrikes on April 14 at Tumbun Rego and a nearby training camp, using aircraft from both Nigeria and Niger.

“Over 70 ISWAP terrorists were either eliminated or severely injured,” he said.