The military has identified several senior commanders of the Islamic State (ISIS) and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) operating around the Lake Chad region in northern Borno State following the exploitation of intelligence recovered during a recent offensive operation.

The Acting Military Information Officer, Headquarters Joint Task Force (North East), Operation Hadin Kai, Capt. Mohammed Goni, disclosed this in a statement issued on Thursday in Maiduguri.

According to Goni, troops recovered high-value intelligence materials, including technical devices, during an operation against ISWAP fighters on the fringes of Lake Chad in Borno State.

Among the items recovered was a camcorder allegedly used by the terrorists to record propaganda videos and document their operations.

He said forensic analysis of the recovered devices produced actionable intelligence that enabled the military to identify terrorist locations and several senior ISWAP commanders operating within the Mangari–Metele–Dogon Chukun axis along the Lake Chad Basin in Abadam and Kukawa Local Government Areas of Borno State.

The identified commanders include Abu Musa Al-Mangawi Baa Shuwa, described as the Wali (Governor) of ISIS West Africa Province; his deputy, Amirul Jaish Muhammad Jidda, also known as “The One-Handed Man”; and Hamad Abu Hanifa, identified as the Amirul-Fiya of ISWAP.

According to the military, Abu Musa Al-Mangawi Baa Shuwa remains the most wanted ISWAP leader operating within the Lake Chad Basin.

The military has consequently announced a monetary reward for anyone who provides credible and actionable intelligence leading directly to his arrest.

“All information received will be treated with the utmost confidentiality, and the identity of informants will be fully protected in accordance with established security procedures,” the statement said.

The military recalled that on May 16, a joint Nigeria–United States airstrike killed a top ISWAP commander, Abu-Bilial al-Minuki, in Metele along the Lake Chad shoreline.

It added that the latest intelligence breakthrough reinforces concerns earlier raised by the Forum of Governors of the Lake Chad Basin, comprising Borno and Yobe states in Nigeria, as well as Niger and Chad, which warned in early 2024 that the agriculturally rich Lake Chad region was increasingly becoming a stronghold for ISIS-linked terrorist groups.

The military said the latest development underscores ongoing efforts by Operation Hadin Kai to dismantle the leadership structure of terrorist groups and restore security across the North-East.