A woman identified as the wife of a fighter of the Islamic State West Africa Province has surrendered to troops of Operation Hadin Kai in Borno State with her two-month-old baby after reportedly fleeing the terrorist group’s enclave.
The woman, identified as Falmata Bakwai, surrendered to troops of the 19 Brigade at Cross Kauwa in Kukawa Local Government Area at about 10:15 a.m. on June 26, according to intelligence sources.
Sources said Bakwai escaped from the ISWAP enclave at Dogon Chuku while her husband and other fighters were away from the camp.
During a preliminary debriefing by security personnel, she reportedly attributed her decision to flee to worsening humanitarian conditions within the enclave, citing severe shortages of food and other basic necessities.
The sources said the hardship followed sustained military offensives, including coordinated ground assaults and aerial bombardments targeting terrorist strongholds in the North-East.
Following her surrender, Bakwai and her infant were placed in quarantine and are receiving medical attention in line with military operational procedures.
Military authorities were said to have commenced further debriefing, while arrangements are underway to transfer her to the Headquarters of Sector 3, Operation Hadin Kai/Multinational Joint Task Force, for detailed profiling and investigation.
Security sources described the development as another indication of the increasing pressure on terrorist enclaves resulting from sustained military operations across the region.
The Nigerian military has in recent months intensified coordinated land and air offensives against insurgent hideouts in Borno and neighbouring states, leading to the surrender of several insurgents, their family members and other collaborators.
However, authorities have maintained that all surrendered persons undergo thorough screening, profiling and investigation before any further action is taken.
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