ISWAP Senior Commander Killed During Failed Attack on Nigerian Military Base
By Peace Erewunmi
A senior commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), Abu Salim al-Barnawi, has been killed during a failed attack on a Nigerian military base in the North-East, according to military authorities.
Operation HADIN KAI confirmed that Abu Salim, who served as the terrorist group’s chief photographer, videographer and a senior raid commander, was killed alongside other members of ISWAP’s media team during the failed assault. Security forces also recovered a video camera and other operational items from the scene.
Military authorities said ISWAP later acknowledged Abu Salim’s death by publishing an internal obituary, a development they described as evidence of the significant pressure being mounted on the group’s leadership through sustained counter-terrorism operations.
According to Operation HADIN KAI, the death of the senior operative is expected to weaken the terrorist group’s propaganda machinery, disrupt its command structure and reduce its ability to recruit fighters and coordinate attacks across the region.
The military reaffirmed its commitment to continuing intelligence-led operations aimed at dismantling Boko Haram and ISWAP networks, destroying their logistics and propaganda infrastructure, and restoring lasting peace in the North-East.
