Nigerian troops on Saturday eliminated a top-ranking Commander of the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) and 37 other terrorists in a brutal military offensive at Askira Uba, Borno State after the terrorists killed Brigadier General Dzarma Zirkushi and three other soldiers, in an ambush.
The ISWAP terrorists had in the early morning of Saturday embarked on a reprisal attack over the killing of their top Commanders by Nigerian Air Force (NAF) fighter jets at their meeting venue along the Lake Chad region on Friday.
Brigadier General Zirkushi, the Commander of 28 Task Force Brigade, Chibok ,alongside three other soldiers, were killed int eh ambush by ISWAP terrorists while on their way to reinforce troops at Bungulwa village, near Askira Uba on Saturday.
Sources confirmed that the Nigerian troops, who had tactically retreated, regrouped, reinforced and ambushed the ISWAP Commander and eliminated his fighters at Askira Uba axis.
A military source also stated that over 37 bodies of the terrorists killed on Saturday have been recovered, though troops are still combing surrounding bushes in Askira Uba.
He noted that among the weapons destroyed or recovered from ISWAP during the operation include about nine gun trucks, an Armoured Personnel Carrier (APC) and one Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP).
“This (Sunday) morning, while we are still mopping the area, we have so far counted 37 corpses of the terrorists, while one of their leaders, a Commander who was arrested for further investigation died in custody this morning.
“We also recovered dozens of sophisticated guns during the clearance operation,” he said.
PRNigeria
