Troops of Operation Safe Haven have revealed a plot by the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) to set up operational bases in Plateau and Bauchi states.

A statement issued on Sunday by the media officer for OPSH, Maj. Samson Zhakom, detailed how troops apprehended two suspected members of ISWAP during a sting operation on April 11 in the Yelwa area of Shendam Local Government Area, Plateau State.

The suspects, 25-year-olds Abdulkadir Dalhatu and Ubaidu Hassan, were reportedly operating under the guise of tailoring to covertly assist ISWAP’s expansion into the North-Central states. 

Preliminary investigations, according to the statement, indicated that the duo had been sent by an ISWAP commander to establish new cells in Plateau and Bauchi.

In a related operation, troops from Sector 4 of OPSH raided the hideout of a wanted criminal in Mazat village, within the Barkin Ladi Local Government Area. 

Although the suspect managed to escape prior to the troops’ arrival, soldiers recovered an AK-47 rifle, a magazine, and various other items buried within the premises.

Separately, troops from Sector 2, acting upon credible intelligence, ambushed bandits along the Pinau-Bangalala road in Wase Local Government Area. 

In this engagement, one bandit was neutralised while others fled, sustaining injuries.

Tragedy also struck the Zogu community in Miango District of Bassa Local Government Area, where terrorists reportedly killed a man and his two sons during an early morning attack on Saturday. 

The victims were identified by the Irigwe Development Association as 56-year-old Weyi Gebeh and his sons, Zhu (25) and Henry (16).

Jugo stated, “The way criminal elements invade our motherland and kill with impunity seems to suggest a more sinister motive than mere reprisal for alleged wrongs. 

IDA therefore calls on the Plateau State government and the security to do the needful and stop the killing of innocent people in Irigwe land.”