A senior commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), Abdussamad Ohida, has been killed during a joint security operation in the Owo forest area of Ondo State.
Ohida, also known as Anwar, was eliminated over the weekend by a combined team comprising operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), Nigerian Army troops and personnel of the Western Nigeria Security Network, popularly known as Amotekun Corps.
Security sources said the intelligence-led operation targeted an ISWAP hideout in the forest, where Ohida and several other members of the terrorist group were killed in a surprise assault.
According to sources quoted by PUNCH Newspaper, Ohida previously served as deputy to Abu Ikrimah, also known as Abu Uwais, who was identified as the ISWAP Central Nigeria leader before the DSS arrested him in 2023.
Following Ikrimah’s arrest, Ohida allegedly assumed responsibility for ISWAP activities across parts of the North-Central and southern regions of Nigeria, becoming involved in the planning, coordination and execution of attacks.
Sources said intelligence obtained during the interrogation of Abu Uwais helped security agencies uncover Ohida’s alleged plans to launch attacks against civilians during the forthcoming Yuletide period.
The intelligence reportedly indicated that the group also intended to use the attacks to disrupt preparations for the 2027 general elections.
One security source said the intelligence was corroborated by intelligence partners in the United Kingdom, who subsequently supported the operation that led to Ohida’s elimination.
Ohida was also accused of masterminding several attacks on security formations and military targets in different parts of the country.
Among them was the December 31, 2025 invasion of Ipele Divisional Police Station in Owo, Ondo State, during which eight AK-47 rifles were reportedly stolen before the station was destroyed with explosives.
He was also linked by the security sources to the July 28, 2022 attack on a military checkpoint along the Suleja–Zuba Road in Niger State, where several soldiers, security personnel and civilians were killed.
Other attacks attributed to him include the July 11, 2022 assault on the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja; the April 23, 2022 attack on Ogaminana Police Station in Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State, which left five police officers dead; and the February 7, 2022 attack on the Okene Area Command police station.
The sources further accused Ohida of planning and executing the December 24, 2020 attack on a naval checkpoint in Okene, Kogi State, in which two naval officers were killed.
A security source described Ohida’s death as a major setback to ISWAP’s leadership structure and efforts to expand its operational presence in central and southern Nigeria.
The operation came months after the reported killing of ISIS leader Abu Bilal al-Minuki, with the source saying the latest development further demonstrates the security agencies’ growing ability to disrupt terrorist networks operating in Nigeria.
