Troops of Operation Hadin Kai under the North-East Joint Task Force have killed a commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and three other fighters during separate operations in Borno and Yobe states.

The slain commander, identified as Jukaibib, was neutralised while leading what the military described as a coordinated criminal operation in the Gujba axis of the Timbuktu Triangle of Sambisa Forest in Yobe State.

The Media Information Officer of Operation Hadin Kai, Lt-Col Sani Uba, said in a statement issued yesterday in Maiduguri that ground troops recorded “major operational successes across the North-East”, adding that sustained, intelligence-driven actions had disrupted insurgents’ criminal activities.

Uba said an encounter with terrorists around Kimba in Damboa Local Council of Borno State on January 30, 2026 forced the fighters into disarray, with several fleeing into the forest with gunshot wounds.
“This impressive operational development represents a major blow to the command and control structure of ISWAP in the North-East,” he said.

In a related operation, troops working with the Civilian Joint Task Force killed three terrorists during an ambush along the Ngazalgana–Lamusheri axis of Borno State, following credible intelligence on insurgents’ movements.
Uba said the troops laid a tactical ambush on the identified route and engaged the fighters, resulting in the death of three more insurgents, while others escaped with gunshot wounds. Two AK-47 rifles and an unspecified quantity of ammunition were recovered at the scene.

He added that the operations form part of sustained efforts to deny terrorists freedom of movement by degrading their operational capabilities across the theatre of war.