Nigerian soldiers freed 47 captives — mostly women and children — from ISWAP terrorists in Kangarwa village, Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State on Saturday, June 20, 2026.

The rescue came after a combined ground and air offensive by troops of the Joint Task Force (North East), known as Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK), that forced the insurgents to abandon their positions.

Captain Mohammed Goni, the Acting Military Information Officer at OPHK’s Theatre Command headquarters in Maiduguri, announced the development in a statement on Monday night.

“The Joint Task Force (North East), Operation HADIN KAI, has recorded yet another significant humanitarian success with the rescue of over 47 persons, mostly women and children, who were held captive by ISWAP terrorists in Kangarwa, Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State on 20 June 2026,” he said.

A Village Long Shadowed by Insurgency

Kangarwa’s name is not new to Nigeria’s security files. As far back as November 2018, ISWAP overran the village and seized military equipment, using it as a demonstration of their capacity to capture and hold territory near Lake Chad.

The area sits within Kukawa LGA, one of the northernmost districts of Borno State, bordering the Lake Chad basin — a region that has become a principal operating theatre for the group.

ISWAP is primarily active in the Chad Basin, fighting an extensive insurgency against Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger.

It originated as an offshoot of Boko Haram, from which it formally broke in 2016.

Since then, the group has exploited the remoteness of Lake Chad’s islands and surrounding villages, building what analysts describe as a parallel governance structure funded in part by taxing local farmers and fishermen.

The military’s sustained pressure on these enclaves has, however, been producing results.

In late May 2026, a man named Ahmad Sheriff and two children surrendered to troops between Kukawa and Cross Kauwa, also in Kukawa LGA.

Sheriff told soldiers he was among 17 persons who had fled a terrorist camp in the same Kangarwa area but became separated while attempting to surrender. That episode foreshadowed Saturday’s larger rescue.

Ground and Air Pressure Broke the Terrorists

Captain Goni attributed the June 20 success directly to the intensity of OPHK’s offensive campaign.

“The successful rescue operation was made possible through sustained aggressive pressure and relentless offensive operations conducted by OPHK troops against ISWAP enclaves in the Lake Chad region. The unrelenting ground and air offensives forced the terrorists to abandon their positions in confusion, enabling the victims to escape from prolonged captivity,” he said.

The rescued persons are now at a secure location, receiving medical care from military health professionals.

Necessary humanitarian support is also being provided in coordination with relevant agencies, with a view to facilitating their eventual return to their communities.

This rescue is part of a pattern of recent OPHK gains. Just one day before the rescue, on June 19, 2026, ISWAP terrorists launched multiple attacks on troops’ positions at Dusten Kura and Chara road in Buratai, Biu LGA of Borno State.

Alert troops, supported by intelligence, responded with coordinated firepower from ground and air components, repelling the assault.

The Theatre Command was emphatic about what comes next. It reaffirmed its resolve to sustain offensive operations, dismantle remaining ISWAP networks, and restore peace and normalcy across the North East.