Troops of Operation Safe Haven (OPSH) have foiled a plot by the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) to establish operational cells in Plateau and Bauchi states, the Nigerian military announced on Sunday.
In a statement issued by OPSH media officer, Major Samson Zhakom, two suspected ISWAP operatives were arrested during a sting operation conducted on April 11 in the Yelwa area of Shendam Local Government Area (LGA), Plateau State.
The suspects, identified as 25-year-olds Abdulkadir Dalhatu and Ubaidu Hassan, were allegedly working undercover as tailors to discreetly set up ISWAP sleeper cells in the North-Central region.
Preliminary investigations revealed that both men were sent by a senior ISWAP commander to coordinate the group’s expansion into Plateau and Bauchi, raising fresh concerns over the insurgent group’s growing footprint beyond the Northeast.
In a related counterterrorism effort, OPSH troops from Sector 4 raided the hideout of a wanted criminal in Mazat village, Barkin Ladi LGA. Although the suspect evaded capture, soldiers recovered an AK-47 rifle, a loaded magazine, and other buried items from the location.
Separately, Sector 2 troops acting on intelligence laid an ambush for armed bandits along the Pinau-Bangalala road in Wase LGA. One bandit was neutralised in the encounter, while others fled with gunshot wounds.
Meanwhile, in a tragic development, terrorists attacked Zogu community in the Miango District of Bassa LGA early Saturday morning, killing a man and his two sons. The victims were identified by the Irigwe Development Association (IDA) as 56-year-old Weyi Gebeh, his 25-year-old son Zhu, and 16-year-old son Henry.
IDA President, Danjuma Jugo, decried the senseless killings, suggesting a more sinister motive behind the continued attacks on Irigwe land. “The way criminal elements invade our motherland and kill with impunity seems to suggest a more sinister motive than mere reprisal for alleged wrongs,” he said.
The IDA has called on the Plateau State Government and security agencies to intensify efforts to protect lives and stop the cycle of violence in the region.
The military has reiterated its commitment to maintaining security in the region and dismantling any insurgent or criminal networks threatening national peace and stability.
