Senior ISWAP finance chief, sons surrender to army in Borno

A senior finance operative of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), alongside two of his male children, has surrendered to troops of the Joint Task Force North East, codename Operation HADIN KAI (OPHK).

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The surrender took place on Saturday, along the Ladari–Jegarawa–Tunokalia axis on the Gamboru–Wulgo main supply route in Borno State.

The terrorist laid down his arms to troops of the 3rd Battalion, operating under the 24th Task Force Brigade.

According to an official statement on Sunday by the Acting Media Information Officer for Headquarters OPHK, Mohammed Goni, preliminary profiling identified the surrendered insurgent as the Chief Finance Operative of the ISWAP enclave at Jubillaram. In that role, he oversaw the group’s logistics and financial administration.

Troops recovered an AK-47 rifle, four magazines, 101 rounds of 7.62 mm special ammunition, a motorcycle, and ₦40,000 in cash during the operation.

Mr Goni, a captain, attributed the capitulation to sustained land and air offensives targeting terrorist enclaves across the region.

He noted that the surrender of a key logistics officer signals a severe blow to ISWAP’s operational capability, command structure, and supply network.

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“The surrender of such a key finance operative represents another significant setback for ISWAP,” Goni stated. “Coupled with the increasing number of recent surrenders, this development confirms deepening disillusionment within terrorist ranks and points to an accelerating wave of defections.”

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Military authorities revealed that approximately 46 terrorists and their family members have voluntarily surrendered to troops in recent days under mounting operational pressure.

The suspect and his children are currently undergoing detailed profiling and interrogation to extract actionable intelligence to support ongoing operations, the statement read.

The Theatre Command reiterated its call for remaining insurgents to lay down their arms and leverage the Federal Government’s non-kinetic initiatives, while urging the public to continue providing timely intelligence to security agencies, the army said.