Airstrikes in Lake Chad kill top ISWAP commanders

According to military sources:On November 5, 2022, the Air Component of Operation Hadin Kai carried out air interdiction missions at Belowa.Belowa is one of the few remaining ISWAP/Boko Haram enclaves in Abadam Local Government’s Tumbuns, Lake Chad Region.
“Intelligence revealed the gathering of some ISWAP leaders and fighters from nearby areas for a meeting with the intention of planning attacks on friendly forces, making the strikes necessary.As a result, a variety of aircraft from the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) were flown to the confirmed active location of the meeting at Belowa.
After that, multiple passes of rockets and bombs were fired at the location.Precision strikes by NAF aircraft struck two vehicles carrying approximately 13 injured surviving terrorists to another hideout an hour after the strikes.Following the strikes, feedback revealed that ISWAP kingpin Mallam Ali Kwaya, a key ISWAP Shura Council member, and Mallam Bukar Mainoka were among those neutralized.

The Nation has learned that military airstrikes have reportedly resulted in the deaths of several fighters, including Ali Kwaya and Bukar Mainoka, two well-known commanders of the Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) terror group.
Air strikes “aimed at fracturing the will of remnants of terrorists and insurgents to fight as well as denying them their freedom of movement” continued the military operations, according to sources.

Added the sources:On November 4, 2022, strikes of a similar nature were carried out at Ngwuri Gana in the Bama LGA, which is east of Maiduguri.After receiving information that a group of ISWAP insurgents in 15 trucks had been observed converging at the location, the strikes were carried out immediately.
“It was believed that the insurgents, who were armed with a variety of weapons, had traveled from the Bama LGA’s Mina, Abuja Kote, and Tanga Lan Nga Villages.Usually, this kind of regrouping means that troops in Bama LGA were going to be attacked.As a result, the need to strike the location was allowed.Based on feedback, the strike was successful because several terrorists were eliminated and all of their vehicles and structures were destroyed by fire.
“A state of desperation, confusion, apprehension, and anxiety is reflected in the recent behaviors of remnants of terrorists and insurgents, particularly in the Northeast.”On the one hand, as their sources of weapon supplies have been blocked, their freedom to loiter and strike at will against vulnerable villages and troops has drastically decreased.
“The infighting among the terrorist groups is also seen as a clear indication that these groups’ efforts to attack the troop’s location are coming to an end,”

Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, a spokesperson for the NAF, confirmed the strikes when contacted, but he declined to provide the names of the deceased.
He stated, “We will not back down until all locations are free of terrorists and insurgents, and our road to victory in the Northeast and Northwest remains on course.Also, let’s not forget that our pilots and technicians’ resilience complies with Air Marshal Amao’s directive that terrorists and insurgents must be denied their hiding places.