RismadarVoice Reporters, April 12, 2026
The Air Component of Joint Task Force (North East), Operation HADIN KAI (OPHK), has carried out a precision airstrike on a terrorist enclave and logistics hub near the abandoned village of Jilli in Gubio Local Government Area of Borno State.
The operation, executed on April 11, 2026, followed sustained Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions over the Bindul–Jilli axis—an area identified as a key movement corridor for Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters and their collaborators.
Military authorities said the strike was prompted by increased terrorist activities in the area, including a deadly Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack in January that claimed the lives of eight soldiers along the Gubio–Damasak road. Recent coordinated attacks in Ngamdu and Benisheik were also linked to the same logistics network.
According to a statement by Lieutenant Colonel Sani Uba, Media Information Officer of OPHK, intensified surveillance on April 11 detected the movement of suspected terrorists using motorcycles and gun trucks converging on Jilli. The intelligence was further confirmed by credible human sources, leading to a carefully coordinated targeting process.
“Upon final validation, the Air Component executed a series of precision strikes on the objective, with surveillance platforms maintaining continuous overwatch for real-time battle damage assessment,” the statement said.
Post-strike assessments confirmed the destruction of the terrorist logistics enclave, with several terrorists neutralised and their vehicles destroyed. Survivors were seen fleeing the area, while intelligence reports indicated that the group was preparing logistics for planned attacks on military positions within the Gubio axis.
In a related development, a suspected logistics courier identified as “Turja Bulu” was arrested on April 12 in Ngamdu. During preliminary interrogation, he reportedly confessed to participating in the April 9 attack on a military formation in Benisheik and disclosed details of ongoing terrorist supply operations in the Magumeri–Gubio area.
The military said the operation has significantly disrupted planned terrorist activities, weakened their operational capacity in the region.
Reiterating operational directives, the Theatre Command warned that the use of motorcycles remains strictly prohibited across the North East, particularly in Borno and Yobe States, due to their continued use by terrorist groups for mobility and logistics.
Operation HADIN KAI assured residents of the region of sustained military pressure on terrorist elements, emphasizing its commitment to dismantling all enclaves and restoring lasting peace in the North East.
