By Muhammad Sabiu
The National Security Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari, General Babagana Mungono, has confirmed Thursday that Malam Bako, the top Boko Haram commander, who recently took over the leadership of the deadly Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) from the late Abu Mus’ab Albarnawi, has been killed.
General Mungono, who spoke to journalists at the State House, stated that the military had launched an attack on the insurgents “two days ago”, which led to the elimination of the commander.
Mungono was quoted as saying, “Two days ago, the man who succeeded him, one Malam Bako, one of the prominent leaders of the Shura Council of the Islamic State of West African Province, was also taken out.
“They are also contending with leadership crisis. You know these things are also accompanied with inherent issues of trust, conflicts, mutual suspicion and other things.
He added that the efforts of the military are really making an impact in the fight against terrorists.
“So, the operations being conducted by the armed forces in the Northern parts of the country put a lot of pressure on the Islamic State of West African Province, Boko Haram and also the tangential group known as Islamic State in the Greatest Sahara,” he said.