Air Force Unleashes Firepower On ISWAP Enclave In Borno
By Alabidun Shuaib AbdulRahman
The Air Component of the Joint Task Force (North East), Operation HADIN KAI, has conducted a precision air strike on a suspected terrorist enclave in Borno State, killing scores of insurgents and destroying logistics assets linked to the Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP.
The strike, which took place on April 11, 2026, targeted a known terrorist hideout near the abandoned village of Jilli in Gubio Local Government Area, following what the military described as sustained intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions over the Bindul–Jilli axis.
According to a statement by the Media Information Officer, Headquarters Joint Task Force (North East), Lieutenant Colonel Sani Uba, the operation was “carefully coordinated, well-planned and intelligence-driven,” noting that the area had long served as a movement corridor and convergence point for terrorists and their collaborators.
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Uba said, “The successful strike followed sustained ISR missions over the Bindul–Jilli axis, an area long identified as a major terrorist movement corridor and convergence point for ISWAP terrorists and their collaborators.”
He recalled that the renewed offensive became necessary after a series of attacks linked to the same network, including a January 2026 improvised explosive device attack along the Bindul route that killed eight soldiers, as well as coordinated assaults in Ngamdu and Benisheik on April 9.
Providing details of the latest operation, the military spokesman said multiple intelligence reports had indicated the movement of gun trucks and motorcycles along the axis, prompting intensified surveillance that confirmed the convergence of suspected terrorists at the Jilli location.
“Upon final validation, the Air Component executed a series of precision strikes on the objective, while surveillance platforms maintained continuous overwatch for real-time battle damage assessment,” he said.
He added that post-strike assessments showed the target was hit with “high accuracy,” resulting in the destruction of the logistics hub, neutralisation of several fighters, and the scattering of fleeing insurgents, thereby disrupting planned attacks on military formations in the area.
In a related development, Uba disclosed that a suspected logistics courier identified as Turja Bulu was arrested in Ngamdu on April 12, adding that the suspect confessed to participating in the April 9 attack in Benisheik and was on a mission to supply food items to other insurgents operating within the Magumeri-Gubio axis.
The military reiterated its ban on the use of motorcycles across the North-East theatre, warning that such movements would be treated as hostile, while assuring residents that operations would continue “with renewed intensity until all terrorist enclaves are dismantled and lasting peace is restored.”
