Nigeria: NAF Airstrikes Kill ISWAP Commander Khalid Al Muhajir, 8 Others in Borno

What the report says

The Nigerian Air Force says an airstrike in Borno State killed ISWAP commander Abu Khalid Al Muhajir and eight other militants. According to a statement attributed to NAF spokesman Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, the operation took place on Saturday, 8 August 2026, after intelligence pointed to suspected terrorist activity in the Sambisa Forest area.

The report says the air force used a remotely piloted aircraft to watch the target area before carrying out a precision strike on a suspected hideout. It says later battle-damage checks and follow-up intelligence indicated that nine ISWAP fighters were killed and several others were wounded. The statement described Al Muhajir as a senior figure who helped provide security escorts for the movement of top members of the group.

The NAF said the strike could disrupt ISWAP’s protection network and limit the movement of high-value members across its enclaves in and around Sambisa. It also said some of those affected may have links to elements involved in a recent attack on Nigerian troops along the Bita-Yamtage axis in Gwoza local government area, though that connection was presented as intelligence-based rather than independently confirmed.

More broadly, the air force framed the operation as part of ongoing intelligence-led air campaigns with surface-force coordination aimed at reducing militant capability and improving security for communities in Nigeria’s North East.