Troops Rescue 86 Kidnap Victims As Air Force Strikes ISWAP, Bandits’ Hideouts

Troops of Joint Task Force North East, Operation HADIN KAI (OPHK), have rescued 86 kidnap victims, foiled an ambush and arrested 29 terrorists’ logistics suppliers in Borno State.

A statement by the media information officer, Joint Task Force North East, Operation HADIN KAI, Lt-Col Sani Uba, said the separate operations were conducted successfully with no casualty on the part of their own troops.

He said troops of the 135 Special Forces Battalion, under Sector 2 OPHK, on 9 November 2025, encountered Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists at Dutse Kura.

The encounter followed intelligence that terrorists were abducting civilians and vehicles along the Buratai–Kamuya Road.

He said the troops thwarted the attack, pursued the terrorists towards Mangari, and overpowered them in a follow-up encounter near a camp, forcing the insurgents to flee in disarray.

According to him, “A search of the area led to the discovery of 11 makeshift terrorists’ structures and the rescue of 86 kidnapped victims comprising men, women, and children.”

Items recovered include: one AK-47 rifle, five magazines with 73 rounds, four PKT ammunition belts, five civilian vehicles, five motorcycles, eight bicycles, and two logistics tricycles.

The terrorists’ camp was subsequently destroyed, he added.

In a related operation, Uba said troops deployed at Mangada arrested 29 terrorists’ logistics suppliers en route to Chilaria with several items.

Items recovered include two pickup vans and a tricycle loaded with Premium Motor Spirit, approximately 1,000 litres of petrol in jerricans, four gallons of engine oil, two new gun truck tyres, a substantial cache of medical supplies, and large quantities of foodstuffs and provisions.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has eliminated scores of Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists in Mallam Fatori and Shuwaram, Borno State, and destroyed bandit enclaves in Garin Dandi and Chigogo, Kwara State, as well as Zango Hill in Kankara local government area of Katsina State.

A statement by the NAF spokesman, Air Cdre Ehimen Ejodame, said the coordinated missions were carried out on November 9, 2025 following credible intelligence.

He said the missions represent a decisive phase in ongoing joint operations under Operation HADIN KAI and Operation FANSAN YAMMA, aimed at degrading terrorist and criminal networks across Nigeria’s northern theatres.

In Borno State, he said NAF airstrikes dealt a heavy blow to ISWAP terrorists entrenched in the Northern Tumbuns.

He noted that the Air Component guided by real-time Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) feeds conducted precision strikes southeast of Shuwaram before shifting to Mallam Fatori, where ISWAP elements were observed mobilising with motorcycles and boats along the Lake Chad Basin.

According to him, the strikes destroyed the insurgent hideouts, logistics hubs, and weapons storage facilities, eliminating several terrorists and crippling their mobility capabilities.

” Post-strike assessments confirmed multiple neutralisations and a significant degradation of ISWAP’s operational networks in the area,” he said.

Similarly, NAF aircraft carried out precision air interdiction missions over Garin Dandi and Chigogo in Kwara State, striking bandit camps with devastating accuracy based on credible intelligence.

He said the attacks caused panic and inflicted heavy losses among the criminals.

In a related operation, air assets under Operation FANSAN YAMMA struck Zango Hill in Kankara LGA, Katsina State, the hideout of a terrorist kingpin and his fighters.

He said the aircraft, guided by actionable intelligence and ISR surveillance, executed multiple attack passes destroying key logistics hubs and neutralising several of the terrorists in one of the most decisive strikes in the region.

Furthermore, the Air Component of Operation FANSAN YAMMA (Sector 1) conducted an Armed Reconnaissance mission across the northwest corridor, covering key settlements in Zamfara, Kebbi, and Kaduna States, including Kakihum, Dankolo, Kotonkoro, and Kuyello.

He said the locations served as known routes and hideouts for armed groups along the Birnin Gwari–Funtua axis. “During the mission, coordination with Forward Operating Bases at Dankolo and Kotonkoro revealed suspicious movement near Wam Hill, where terrorists on motorcycles were spotted attempting to flee. The aircrew swiftly engaged and neutralised the targets, with no further hostile activity observed,”.

The director said the success of these precision operations across Borno, Kwara, Katsina, and the wider northwestern corridor underscores the Nigerian Air Force’s renewed tempo following the directives of the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke.

“Each mission reaffirms NAF’s resolve to project smarter and intelligence driven airpower to project purposeful lethality against insurgents and criminals while protecting the lives and properties of citizens towards enhancing national security,” he added.