The Joint Task Force North West, Operation FANSAN YAMMA, has launched Operation CLEAN SWEEP IV, a major coordinated offensive aimed at dismantling terrorist and armed criminal networks and preventing the expansion of terrorist activities across the North West.
The Media Information Officer of the Joint Task Force, Lieutenant Colonel Aliyu Danja, said in a statement that the operation combines coordinated ground and air actions to degrade terrorist capabilities, disrupt their movements and logistics, and deny them the opportunity to establish operational footholds in Nigerian communities.
The offensive has already recorded intensified operations across the Theatre.
In Katsina State, troops of Sector 2 on August 12, 2026, conducted a clearance operation around suspected terrorist enclaves in the Dutsinma Local Government Area. The sustained military pressure forced the terrorists to abandon their positions and flee into surrounding bushes, with clearance operations continuing in the general area.
In Zamfara State, following credible intelligence on the movement and convergence of terrorists on motorcycles in Anka Local Government Area, the Air Component of Operation FANSAN YAMMA conducted precision air strikes that neutralised scores of terrorists.
The strikes also forced surviving terrorists to abandon their motorcycles and flee into surrounding bushes. The air assets subsequently reacquired and engaged the fleeing elements.
A key objective of Operation CLEAN SWEEP IV is the containment and dismantling of the Lakurawa terrorist network across the Theatre.
According to the Joint Task Force, the operation is designed to prevent the infiltration and reinforcement of Lakurawa elements into Nigeria while denying the group access to border corridors for movement, logistics and the establishment of terrorist enclaves.
The offensive will also target terrorist elements operating around the River Niger axis and the Kainji Lake National Park, with the aim of preventing the areas from being used as platforms for projecting violence into adjoining communities and other parts of the North West.
The Theatre Command said the launch of Operation CLEAN SWEEP IV underscores the proactive and sustained military posture of Operation FANSAN YAMMA in confronting evolving terrorist and criminal threats across the region.
It reaffirmed its commitment to protecting civilian communities, safeguarding Nigeria’s territorial integrity and denying terrorist elements the opportunity to regroup, reinforce or establish operational footholds across the North West.
