Abdussamad Ohida, also known as Anwar, was killed in Owo forest during an intelligence-led operation, according to security sources.
A joint team of the Nigerian Army, Department of State Services and Amotekun has killed a senior Islamic State West Africa Province commander in Ondo State, security sources said.
The commander was identified by the sources as Abdussamad Ohida, also known as Anwar. He was killed alongside several other ISWAP members during a surprise operation at the group’s forest hideout in Owo at the weekend.
The sources said the operation followed intelligence that Ohida was planning attacks against civilians in parts of southern Nigeria during the festive period and intended to disrupt the 2027 general election. They said intelligence obtained by the DSS was corroborated by United Kingdom intelligence partners.
The Nigerian Army, DSS and Western Nigeria Security Network, known as Amotekun, were involved in the operation.
Security sources link Ohida to ISWAP attacks
According to the sources, Ohida previously served as deputy to Abu Ikrimah, also known as Abu Uwais, who was described as the former ISWAP Central Nigeria leader before his arrest by the DSS in 2023.
The sources said Ohida subsequently assumed leadership of ISWAP activities across parts of the North-Central and southern regions, where he allegedly became involved in planning and coordinating attacks.
The claims are significant because Ohida had already appeared on the Nigerian government’s sanctions list.
The Nigeria Sanctions Committee officially lists Abdulsamat AbdulKareem Ohida as a senior ISWAP commander, or Quaid, operating in Okene. Its March 18, 2024 designation also identifies him as a suspected attacker in the June 5, 2022 St Francis Catholic Church attack in Owo and the July 2022 attack on Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja.
The official record uses the name “Abdulsamat AbdulKareem Ohida”, while the security sources cited in Monday’s reports use “Abdussamad Ohida”. The reports appear to refer to the same individual, but the difference in spelling should be noted.
Security sources also attributed several other attacks to Ohida.
They said he planned and executed the December 31, 2025 attack on the Ipele Divisional Police Station in Owo, where eight AK-47 rifles were reportedly taken before the station was destroyed with explosives.
He was also allegedly involved in the July 28, 2022 attack on a military checkpoint along the Suleja-Zuba road in Niger State, in which soldiers, security personnel and civilians were killed.
Other attacks attributed to him by the sources include the July 2022 attack on Kuje Correctional Centre, the April 23, 2022 attack on Ogaminana Police Station in Adavi Local Government Area of Kogi State, which reportedly killed five police officers, and the February 2022 attack on the Okene Area Command police station.
The Nigeria Sanctions Committee’s record independently supports the link between the name Ohida and the Owo church and Kuje attacks, although its designation describes him as a terrorist financier and does not constitute a criminal conviction.
Operation targets ISWAP’s southern expansion
Security sources said the operation was significant because Ohida was allegedly helping ISWAP expand its activities beyond the group’s traditional strongholds.
They described his death as a disruption to the group’s leadership and operational network in central and southern Nigeria.
The sources also linked the operation to intelligence gathered following Abu Uwais’s arrest and said information from British intelligence partners helped corroborate the threat assessment.
The Nigerian security agencies involved have not, in the reports reviewed, issued a detailed public statement independently confirming all the allegations against Ohida or the specific operational intelligence cited by the sources.
The reported operation nevertheless comes as security agencies face growing concerns over the spread of jihadist networks into parts of central and southern Nigeria.
Source: TheCable
