Troops of the Nigerian Army under Operation CLEAN SWEEP III have recorded another significant success in ongoing counter-banditry operations in Katsina State, rescuing four kidnapped victims during sustained offensives targeting the notorious bandit leader, Kachalla Muhammadu Fulani, and his criminal network.
On Tuesday, 16 June 2026, troops of the 17 Brigade Strike Group/Quick Response Force, supported by personnel of the 8 Division Special Forces, launched a coordinated offensive to clear terrorist hideouts in Fafu Village along the Matazu–Musawa axis. Prior to the ground operation, the Air Component of Operation FANSAN YAMMA conducted intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions over the area, enabling troops to accurately locate and dominate the terrorists’ enclave.
Troops made contact with the terrorists and engaged them with superior firepower. Unable to withstand the sustained assault, the terrorists fled in disarray, abandoning their camp and captives. Subsequent clearance operations at the location led to the rescue of four abducted victims.
The rescued victims were immediately evacuated to the Forward Operating Base in Matazu, where they were received by the General Officer Commanding 8 Division and Commander Sector 2 Operation FANSAN YAMMA, Major General BP Koughna, who reassured them of their safety and reaffirmed the military’s commitment to restoring peace and security across the state. Some of the victims, who sustained gunshot injuries inflicted by their abductors during captivity, received immediate medical attention and were later transferred to the Federal Teaching Hospital, Katsina, for further treatment.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the victims were abducted on 14 April 2026 from Sabon Sara along the Matazu–Karaduwa Road and were held alongside the late Major General Rabe Abubakar (rtd) and his wife.
Troops are continuing to track Kachalla Muhammadu Fulani and other criminal elements and have pledged to sustain aggressive operations until all those responsible for attacks on innocent civilians are apprehended or neutralised. The Nigerian Army, in collaboration with other security agencies, reiterated its commitment to ensuring that terrorists and bandits have no safe haven.