Troops arrest suspected Arab ISIS operative after failed ISWAP attack in Borno

Troops of Operation HADIN KAI have arrested a suspected foreign operative believed to have links to the Islamic State, ISIS.

The suspected ISIS operatives was arrested during intensified operations following a failed attack by Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP, fighters on Cross Kauwa in Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State.

The development was disclosed in a report by Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency and security analyst covering the Lake Chad region.

According to the report, troops repelled a coordinated attack on Cross Kauwa before launching exploitation operations along the withdrawal routes used by the fleeing insurgents.

Makama reported that during the follow-up operations, troops recovered additional operational materials allegedly abandoned by the attackers, including high-frequency hand-held radios and other communication equipment believed to have been used by the group.

“Among the items recovered were high-frequency hand-held radios (HHR), communication equipment considered crucial to the command and control structure of the terrorist group,” the report stated.

The report added that intelligence obtained from the recovered items led troops to extend operations into the Lake Chad Islands axis and Abadam Local Government Area, where a fleeing suspect believed to be an Arab of Moroccan origin with suspected links to ISIS was apprehended.

Makama further reported that military sources said the suspect had earlier been identified during a forensic review of video footage recovered from a camcorder allegedly belonging to a terrorist cameraman who was neutralised during the failed Cross Kauwa attack.

“The camcorder, according to the sources, belonged to a terrorist cameraman who was killed during the failed assault on Cross Kauwa,” the report stated.

The report said the suspect was evacuated by a Nigerian Air Force helicopter to a secure military facility, where he is undergoing interrogation as security agencies investigate his alleged role within the terrorist organisation, his reported links to ISIS and possible involvement in operational planning, training, communications and media activities.