MAIDUGURI — High-ranking commanders from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) have surrendered to Nigerian forces in the country’s north-east following a series of intense military offensives, officials say.
The commanders surrendered alongside 76 foot soldiers and their families within the past week, abandoning their strongholds in the region.
Captain Muhammad Goni, the acting military information officer for the joint task force Operation Hadin Kai, confirmed the development in a statement released on Sunday night.
He stated that the insurgents dropped their weapons after facing “relentless military pressure” and sustained operations backed by real-time intelligence.
Profiling and debriefing
The military has not yet released the identities or exact ranks of the surrendered commanders. Officials stated they have been moved to a secure location where they are currently undergoing profiling, debriefing, and de-radicalisation procedures.
“Persistent military operations have continued to degrade the terrorists’ combat capabilities while eroding confidence within their ranks and leadership,” Captain Goni said. He added that the joint task force had successfully disrupted the group’s command structures and restricted their movement across the region.
The wider context
The wave of surrenders comes as Nigeria intensifies its multi-pronged counter-terrorism strategy, which increasingly couples aggressive air and ground strikes with state-backed pathways for fighters to lay down their arms.
Just last week, federal officials highlighted that more than 124,000 insurgents and their dependents had entered government rehabilitation streams nationwide since the launch of the state’s amnesty initiatives.
The military reiterated its stance that pressure on the remaining insurgent enclaves in the north-east will continue unabated until the networks are completely dismantled.
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