Troops Arrest Suspected ISWAP Member Who Claimed to Have Participated in Three Attacks on Delwa

By Zagazola Makama

Troops of the 73 Battalion (Motorised), Operation HADIN KAI, have arrested a suspected member of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) who confessed to participating in three separate attacks on Delwa in Borno State.

Security sources told Zagazola Makama that the suspect, identified as Abubakar Ibrahim, 28, was arrested at about 6:47 p.m. on July 14 while approaching the gate of the Cashew Plantation area from the bush.

During preliminary interrogation, the suspect initially claimed that he had gone into the bush to fetch firewood but abandoned it after his bicycle developed a flat tyre. He told the troops he was on his way to the Veterinary Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) Camp.

However, further questioning reportedly led to a confession in which he admitted to being an ISWAP member from Warabe, Pulka, in Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State.

According to military sources, the suspect told investigators that he had discarded his AK-47 rifle in a river before approaching troops to surrender.

He also allegedly confessed to being among the ISWAP fighters who participated in three separate attacks on Delwa.

Items recovered from the suspect included one bicycle, one cutlass, one bicycle repair solution, one bicycle pump, one spoon, and ₦6,500 in cash.

Military sources said the suspect and the recovered items remain in the custody of the 73 Battalion and will be handed over to the 7 Military Intelligence Brigade (7 MIB) for further investigation and profiling.

The arrest forms part of ongoing counter-insurgency operations under Operation HADIN KAI aimed at dismantling terrorist networks and encouraging the surrender of insurgents operating across the North-East.