Troops launch offensive, destroy IEDs, clear terrorist-prone communities in Borno

Troops of Operation HADIN KAI have destroyed two improvised explosive devices, IEDs, and conducted extensive clearance operations across parts of Borno State as part of ongoing wet season offensives aimed at denying Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists freedom of movement.

Security analyst and counter-insurgency expert in the Lake Chad region, Zagazola Makama, disclosed the development in a post shared via his X handle.

According to Makama, the coordinated operations were carried out on Monday, July 21, under Operation DESERT SANITY V by troops of Sector 2 in collaboration with volunteer forces.

Makama quoted intelligence sources as saying that troops of the 19 Battalion (Mechanised) and 25 Brigade Garrison, comprising 134 soldiers supported by 100 volunteer fighters, mounted on four Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles, six gun trucks, three troop-carrying vehicles, one VP1 vehicle and 17 motorcycles, carried out a clearance operation along the Damboa–Bulabulin–Kumala Main Supply Route and adjoining communities.

During the operation, troops swept the Kumala and Bulabulin general areas, where they discovered two primed improvised explosive devices planted along the route by suspected terrorists.

The explosive devices were safely detonated in situ, preventing what security sources described as a potential attack on military personnel and civilian road users.

The troops also encountered a suspected terrorist logistics supplier, who fled on sighting the advancing forces. 

In a related operation conducted simultaneously, combined troops of the 162 Amphibious Battalion, 231 Battalion and 331 Artillery Regiment, alongside 117 volunteer fighters, carried out clearance patrols across Diwa, Liya, Bam, Ngilu, Sura, Pela and Pela Sanga communities.

The combined force, comprising 32 soldiers mounted on two MRAPs and 75 motorcycles, thoroughly searched the communities and surrounding areas without making contact with insurgents or discovering any terrorist camps.

Military sources, according to Makama, said the clearance operations form part of sustained efforts under Operation DESERT SANITY V to dominate the theatre, secure key supply routes, detect explosive hazards and prevent terrorists from re-establishing camps during the rainy season.