The global terrorist group, Islamic State in Syria (ISIS) has released a list of the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) Commanders gunned down by Nigerian troops in collaboration with Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) soldiers.
Sources confirmed that the troops had outclassed the terrorists and inflicted a major onslaught in an encounter some weeks ago in the Lake Chad Basin and fringes of Sambisa Forest.
The soruce noted that the troops had stormed the camp of the terrorists, which harboured more than 3,000 fighters of the Abubakar Shekau’s faction of Boko Haram that joined ISWAP after the terrorist sect killed Shekau last year.
According to an intelligence report, the troops and the terrorists were locked in a gun battle which lasted for more than three hours.
Two terrorist commanders were reportedly arrested by the troops.
“Two terrorists were captured alive. During their testimonies, they confessed that the camp was led by top commanders led by one Abu Ikilima. Three Khayds (governors), three Munzul (commanding officers), 1 Nakib (commander) of the Boko Haram as well as several other fighters were neutralised,” the source said.
In a video released by ISIS, the names of the murdered ISWAP commanders were listed. They include:
- Abu Musab al-Yobawi
- Abu Nu’man al-Amni
- Abu Abdullah al-Barnawi
- Abu ‘Ammara al-Barnawi
- Abu Anas al-I’alami
- Abdul Malik al-Barnawi
- Abu Sufyan al-I’alami
- Shaykh Abu Bakr al-Da’wi
- Abu Usama Goneri
- Abu Sa’d al-Ansari
- Abu Jabbar al-Barnawi
- Abu Anas al-Barnawi
- Abu Abdul Rahman al-Katsanawi
- Abu Maryam al-Gaidami
- Abu Salman al-Ansari
- Baka Goneiri
- Abu Mustafa al-‘Askari
- Farooq al-Barnawi
- Abu Ahmad al-I’alami
- Al-Qassim Al-Barnawi
- Mustafa al-Barnawi
- Abbas al-Ansari
- Musa al-Ansari
The news of the commanders’ death was broken days after the group was blamed for carrying out an attack that led to the death of dozens of worshippers at a Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.
First published in Daily Trust