Under Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK), troops from the 21 Armoured Brigade, Bama, discovered an underground armoury belonging to the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) in Sambisa Forest, Borno State. A stash of weapons and ammo was found.
The finding was found when forces raided Ukuba Camp, which is located on the outskirts of Bama Local Council. Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency specialist in the Lake Chad area, said yesterday in Maiduguri that the discovery of weaponry and ammunition on May 13, 2023, was part of ongoing counter-insurgency operations dubbed Desert Sanity II.
He said that the military stormed the same camp in the previous two weeks, collecting six anti-aircraft weapons, four AK-47 rifles, and ingredients for building improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
He said other weapons recovered included a cache of magazines and a Hilux vehicle mounted with an anti-aircraft gun.
According to him, the cache was uncovered in pits carefully concealed by the terrorists.
A military source in Maiduguri said several variants of rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) tubes, SMG rifles, double barrel guns, 50 hand grenades, and five SMK bombs were also recovered from the armoury.
According to the source, “we also recovered other weapons, comprising 183 Shukla rounds, several IED-making materials, non-electric detonators, many prepared IEDs, as well as several canister bombs.”
The source added that as the troops were withdrawing from the area, a terrorist was sighted and killed, while an AK-47 rifle and other items were recovered from him.
“Our troops successfully evacuated the arms from the forest after clearing the general area,” the source said, noting that the troops’ morale and fighting spirit were boosted with the clearance operation.
According to The Guardian, troops cleared about a dozen hideouts, including Garno, Alafa, Alafa D, Garin Doctor, Njumia, Izzah, Farisu, and Somalia. He said other cleared camps comprised Ukuba, Garin Glucose, Garin Ba’aba, and Buba Abu Amir.
