Troops Neutralise Senior ISWAP Commander in Borno Encounter

Troops conducting operations under Operation Hadin Kai have reportedly killed a senior commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province, identified as Malam Bako Gorgore, during an encounter in Kukawa Local Government Area.

Security sources said the insurgent leader, believed to be about 60 years old, died during a confrontation with troops in Kukawa, an area close to the Lake Chad Basin that has long served as a strategic base for insurgent activities.

According to the sources, the development was later confirmed through multiple intelligence channels after security operatives intercepted internal communications among ISWAP fighters acknowledging his death.

Gorgore was considered one of the longest-serving figures within the insurgency that emerged under the late founder of Boko Haram, Mohammed Yusuf, in the early 2000s. A native of Yunusari Local Government Area, he steadily rose through the ranks and eventually became one of the most influential commanders within the ISWAP structure.

Over the years, he held several operational and leadership roles, particularly within the Timbuktu Triangle, a vast forest and marshland area that has served as a key insurgent hideout.

Between 2018 and 2021, intelligence reports indicated that Gorgore functioned as the overall commander for the Faruuk axis of the Timbuktu Triangle, taking over the position after another insurgent leader, Mustapha Krimima. During that period, he was regarded as a major operational planner responsible for coordinating insurgent logistics and movements across the Lake Chad region.

One of the most notable incidents linked to Gorgore was the internal conflict within Boko Haram that resulted in the death of Abubakar Shekau, the head of Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad. Security sources said Gorgore was among the senior ISWAP commanders who led fighters into Sambisa Forest in 2021 during the confrontation with Shekau’s faction.

Intelligence accounts from the time indicated that Shekau detonated an explosive device during a final standoff in the Tokumbere area of Sambisa Forest, killing himself and several loyalists rather than surrender. The incident significantly altered the insurgent dynamics in the North-East by weakening the JAS faction and strengthening ISWAP’s influence in parts of Borno State.

Following the events in Sambisa, Gorgore reportedly expanded his influence within the organisation. By 2022, he had been elevated to the Shura Council, the group’s top decision-making body operating under the broader command framework aligned with the Islamic State’s global network.

Before joining the council, he was said to have served as Amir Jaysh, or military commander, in the Timbuktu Triangle after the tenure of Mustapha Krimima. In that capacity, he oversaw combat operations, managed fighters, and coordinated insurgent activities across the Lake Chad “Tumbumma” enclaves, an extensive network of islands and marshlands used by militants as operational bases.

Gorgore had previously been reported dead in 2022 after intelligence suggested he was killed in an airstrike by the Nigerian Air Force targeting ISWAP positions around Lake Chad. However, later intelligence assessments indicated that he survived the strike with injuries and later resurfaced within the group’s command hierarchy.