KEY POINTS

• Six suspected ISWAP members died after an IED exploded while being assembled in Marte LGA of Borno State.
• A suspected bomb expert, Abu Umar, was among those killed, while three others were injured.
• Security sources say the blast disrupted a major ISWAP bomb-making hub in the Lake Chad region.

Six suspected members of the Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP, were reportedly killed after an improvised explosive device (IED) they were assembling detonated accidentally in Borno State.

The explosion occurred around 7 a.m. on Saturday in Jubilaram, located in Marte Local Government Area of the state.

According to security sources cited by counter-insurgency publication Zagazola Makama, the group was led by a suspected bomb-making specialist identified as Abu Umar, who also died in the blast alongside five other militants.

Three additional members of the group reportedly sustained severe injuries following the explosion.

Blast Disrupts ISWAP Operations in Lake Chad Axis

Intelligence sources said the deceased were members of ISWAP’s IED production unit operating within the Marte–Kerenoa–Wulgo corridor, a known insurgent route in the Lake Chad Basin.

The explosion reportedly destroyed the bomb-making location situated between Arinna Maimasallaci and Arinna Ciki, temporarily crippling the group’s operational base in the area.

Security officials believe the deaths of the suspected bomb experts could weaken ISWAP’s ability to carry out attacks along key routes in Marte axis.

Military authorities are also said to be considering coordinated air and ground offensives to further disrupt insurgent activities and restrict their movement in the region.