Written by: Badr Ahmed

The Nigerian army carried out a large-scale field operation targeting logistical camps belonging to the Islamic State in West Africa, inside the Sambisa Forest in the northeast of the country, as part of an ongoing security campaign aimed at dismantling the organizational structure of armed groups in the region.

Nigerian army destroys ISIS camps

Local reports indicated that the operation began Friday morning with a swift ground assault targeting fortified positions deep within the forest in the Gwoza area of Borno State, a major stronghold of extremist groups in Nigeria. The reports added that units from the joint security force clashed with suspected members of the group in the villages of Disa and Balangaji, forcing the militants to flee under the pressure of the military offensive.

According to the military account, the forces were able to impose their control over the targeted sites, where a number of camps and logistical facilities that were used to shelter armed elements and coordinate attacks were destroyed, without any losses being recorded among the army ranks.

The Sambisa Forest is one of the most rugged and complex areas in northeastern Nigeria, and for years it has served as a major haven for militant groups, including Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). Its dense terrain allows these groups to conceal themselves and redeploy, making ground operations there highly risky and requiring advanced intelligence efforts.

In a related development, the Nigerian army announced the arrest of three women suspected of involvement in a cell facilitating the group's activities within a camp for internally displaced persons in the Konduga area of Borno State. Authorities stated that the arrests resulted from an intelligence operation that intercepted communications related to an attempt to transfer one of the suspects to an area believed to be under the group's control.

Initial investigations indicate the possibility that the detainees were involved in providing logistical support and facilitating movement and communication between members of the organization, at a time when extremist groups rely on hidden networks within displaced persons camps to gather information and facilitate smuggling and concealment operations.

For more than a decade and a half, Nigeria has witnessed an escalation in violence linked to extremist organizations, especially in the northeast, where the influence of Boko Haram intersects with that of its splinter group that pledged allegiance to ISIS in 2016, which has complicated the security landscape and multiplied threat hotspots.

With ongoing military operations and international support, Nigerian authorities are seeking decisive breakthroughs on the ground, in an attempt to regain control of troubled areas and contain one of the longest-running security and humanitarian crises on the African continent.