‘Boko Haram leader, 27 insurgents’ killed in airstrikes in Borno

Troops of Air Task Force (ATF), Operation Hadin Kai, have reportedly killed Alhaji Modu, a “notorious leader” of Boko Haram.

According to Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency expert, Modu, better known as Bem Bem, was killed alongside 27 other Boko Haram fighters in Borno.

He said Modu was killed on August 3, in military airstrikes in Mandara mountain, Gwoza LGA of Borno.

“A battle damaged assessment has indicated that the air interdiction had recorded devastating impact as many jihadists were killed, while others were severely wounded,” he quoted a source as saying.

According to him, sources said, the operation followed credible intelligence reports indicating that the ISWAP fighters were converging in large numbers with the intention to conduct attacks.

“Bem Bem was a popular drug baron who rose from an armed robber to Boko Haram Kingpin. He took part in the displacement of Bama town in 2014, and the killing of hundreds of people before declaring it as its caliphate,” Makama said.

He added that Modu had been hiding in caves in the Mandara mountain from where he coordinated attacks in Nigeria, Cameroon and Niger Republic.

In a similar development, Makama said soldiers, on Sunday, repelled attempts by Boko Haram fighters to attack Bama LGA.

He said the insurgents attempted to attack the town located about 45 miles to Maiduguri, the capital of Borno, around 2:30 am.