Borno: Army Repels ISWAP Attack, Kills 25 Terrorists

By Molayo Anjorin

Nigerian soldiers have defeated a four-pronged Inclusive Islamic State of West Africa Platform (ISWAP) assault on a military base in Kukawa, Borno, killing more than 25 terrorists and destroying several weapons.

The terrorists attacked the 101 Special Forces Battalion from four directions on Tuesday night, but soldiers pushed them back with gunpowder and air strikes, forcing the militants to retreat.

Captain Mohammed Goni, Acting Military Information Officer, Headquarters Joint Task Force (North East), Operation Hadin Kai, said the military recovered 14 bodies from the attack.

“Preliminary assessment indicates that over 25 terrorists were neutralised with 14 bodies recovered so far,” Goni said.

Soldiers also recovered six AK-47 rifles and other small arms from the slain militants during the search of the battleground, as troops intensified efforts to find more weapons and prevent the remnants of the terrorist network from reorganizing.

The Theatre Commander of Operation Hadin Kai, Major General Ibikunle Ajose, confirmed the attack and said the terrorists were forced to retreat after attacking the military base.

The Army said some of its soldiers died during the crossfire with the terrorists but refused to disclose the number of personnel killed.

In addition, the Military Army said it would continue to fight terrorism in the region by carrying out patrol, intelligence surveillance and interdiction operations, and joint army and air force attacks in the North-East.