Troops of the Nigerian military’s Joint Task Force, North East, Operation Hadin Kai, have reportedly killed 48 suspected Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters during separate operations in Borno and Yobe States.
The operations were conducted in Bitta, Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State, and Buni Yadi, Gujba Local Government Area of Yobe State, between the night of October 29 and the early hours of October 30, 2026.
In a statement on Friday, the Acting Media Information Officer, Headquarters of Operation Hadin Kai, Captain Mohammed Goni, said troops repelled an attempted terrorist assault in Bitta through a coordinated operation involving ground forces and air support.
He said the military’s response overwhelmed the attackers, disrupted their advance and inflicted heavy casualties.
“In a related development, troops launched a successful counter-attack against a large concentration of ISWAP fighters who attacked NETTS Buni Yadi on same 29th October to the early hours on 30th October 2026,” Goni said.
According to him, the approximately five-hour engagement was coordinated by the Theatre Command, with the deployment of Intelligence, Surveillance, Target Acquisition and Reconnaissance (ISTAR) capabilities alongside air and ground assets.
Goni said the counter-offensive resulted in the killing of 48 suspected terrorists, while troops recovered a substantial cache of weapons and ammunition.
The recovered weapons included 42 AK-47 rifles, five PKT machine guns, four General Purpose Machine Guns (GPMG), one 60mm mortar, 105 AK-47 magazines and two video cameras.
Other recovered ammunition comprised 30 rounds of 12.7mm armour-piercing incendiary ammunition, 2,738 rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition, 223 rounds of 7.62mm NATO ammunition and 2,054 rounds of PKT ammunition.
The military disclosed that one soldier was killed during the engagements, while two others sustained minor injuries and were receiving medical attention.
Despite the casualties, Goni said troops remained in high spirits and continued operations aimed at dismantling terrorist networks and restoring security across the North-East.
