Abuja: At least 12 suspected terrorists were killed in a gunfight with Nigerian troops after they attempted to attack a military facility in the northeastern state of Borno, the army has said.
In a statement on Saturday (local time), Nigerian Army spokesperson Sani Uba said the suspected terrorists tried to infiltrate a military position in Kirawa town along the Nigeria-Cameroon border early Friday, but were repelled by troops of the 153 Task Force Battalion and allied forces.
According to Uba, government troops responded with heavy fire, forcing the attackers to retreat toward the Cameroon border area.
The military said several attackers escaped with possible gunshot wounds.
Troops also recovered weapons and ammunition, including AK-47 rifles, rocket-propelled grenade launchers and a machine gun, the statement said.
Earlier on May 19, the military announced that a total of 175 Islamic State fighters and top commanders had been killed by Nigerian troops and US forces in recent combined counter-terrorism operations in the northeastern part of Nigeria.
In a statement, military spokesman Samaila Uba said the coordinated air and ground strikes, which commenced over the weekend, had delivered a major blow to the terrorist group’s operational capacity, destroying multiple IS checkpoints, weapons caches, logistics hubs, military equipment and financial networks sustaining their activities.
Uba said several high-profile IS commanders were among those killed, including Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, described as the group’s second-in-command globally.
According to him, al-Minuki played a central role in IS external operations, including coordination of terrorist financing, recruitment, logistics and attack planning targeting civilians. His elimination is expected to severely disrupt the terrorist group’s command structure, operational coordination and external attack networks, Uba explained.
He identified other key terrorist figures killed during the operations, including Abd-al Wahhab, described as a senior leader of the Islamic State West Africa Province responsible for coordinating attacks and propaganda; Abu Musa al-Mangawi, another senior member; and Abu al-Muthanna al-Muhajir, a senior media production operative.
The military spokesman said the successes further underscored the sustained efforts of the armed forces of Nigeria in tracking and eliminating terrorist elements across the country, adding that the joint operations would be continued to dismantle all terrorist networks threatening national and regional security.
The recent operations were conducted under a recently established counter-terrorism and intelligence-sharing partnership between Nigeria and the United States aimed at dismantling terrorist networks operating in the region.
(IANS)
