7 hostages rescued from ISWAP enclave in Borno

Thursday, January 22, 2026 - The Department of State Services (DSS), in collaboration with forest guards, has rescued seven persons abducted by suspected Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) terrorists in Borno State after a heavy gun battle in a forest enclave. 

The victims were seized on January 19, 2026 while they had gone into the bush to fetch firewood near Ajiri Camp in the outskirts of Maiduguri. 

The seven were intercepted by the terrorists during the scavenging exercise and taken into the forest. 

In the process, two of them managed to escape and returned to Ajiri Camp to alert the community. 

The abductors also sent one of the boys on a bicycle to go home and raise a ransom of N20 million, a source told security analyst Zagazola Makama. 

He added that upon receiving the information, forest guards working with the DSS mobilised to the area and stormed the terrorists’ enclave. 

“The operatives switched off their motorcycles and trekked for almost an hour to avoid detection before engaging the terrorists in a fierce gun battle, which forced the ISWAP elements to flee and abandon their captives,” the source said. 

According to him, the victims were freed unhurt and are currently receiving support and profiling by the relevant authorities. 

The Commander of the Forest Guards, Hassan Modu, who coordinated the operation with the said the success was due to timely intelligence and joint action. 

"We moved quietly, on foot, and engaged them. The terrorists fled when they realised we had closed in on their enclave,” Modu said. 

He commended the DSS for their support and urged residents to continue to provide credible information to security agencies to curb criminal activities in the state. 

According to Zagazola, the forest guards were trained, equipped and are continuously supervised by the Department of State Services (DSS) to operate as an auxiliary community-based security outfit. 

The DSS provides them with basic intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance skills, conducts regular drills on tracking and bush operations, and embeds its officers to guide their activities. 

Through this structure, the forest guards work under the strategic control of the DSS, ensuring professionalism, discipline and effective coordination in joint operations against terrorists and other criminal elements.