Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
Troops of the Joint Task Force North West Operation FANSAN YAMMA (JTF NW OPFY) have launched a sweeping offensive codenamed Operation CLEAN SWEEP III, dismantling terrorist logistics bases and destroying life‑support structures in Matazu Local Government Area of Katsina State. The operation, which began on Sunday, June 14, 2026, was triggered by the abduction and subsequent death of retired Major General Rabe Abubakar, a former Director of Defence Information who was kidnapped alongside his wife in the same local government area on May 30, 2026.
In a press release issued on Monday, June 15, 2026, the Media Information Officer of the Joint Task Force, Lieutenant Colonel Aliyu Danja, disclosed that the offensive is targeting terrorist and bandit elements operating within Matazu and adjoining communities. “The operation is aimed at locating and neutralizing the perpetrators of the heinous act, dismantling criminal networks and restoring security within the affected communities,” the statement read. The launch of Operation CLEAN SWEEP III represents a significant escalation of military pressure in a region where banditry has claimed high‑profile victims and where the state’s inability to secure the release of a retired general has become a national embarrassment.
Since the commencement of the operation, troops have conducted aggressive fighting patrols, intelligence‑led raids, cordon‑and‑search operations and clearance missions across identified criminal hideouts and suspected terrorist enclaves within the Joint Operations Area (JOA). According to the military, notable successes were recorded in the Dikkawa Hills general area and surrounding communities. Troops conducted clearance operations on identified terrorist hideouts in Adua, Nasarawa and Karaduwa areas, where several criminal enclaves were searched and combed. During the operations, terrorists' life‑support structures and logistics bases were discovered and destroyed, further degrading the criminals' ability to operate within the area.
The immediate trigger for the offensive was the death of Major General Abubakar, who was abducted alongside his wife along the Marabar Musawa–Kafinsoli Road on May 30. The Katsina State Government announced his death on June 13, attributing it to complications from diabetes and hypertension. However, the general’s son, Isyaka Rabe, contradicted the official account in a DW Hausa interview on Sunday, insisting that his father had no history of diabetes or hypertension and that the family believes he died as a result of a snakebite or a heart attack while in captivity. The ongoing military operation appears designed, in part, to demonstrate that the state will respond to such high‑profile killings with overwhelming force, irrespective of the precise cause of death.
The operation is being conducted in close collaboration with sister services, other security agencies and local stakeholders. The military acknowledged that community support continues to contribute significantly to ongoing efforts aimed at improving security within the state. The Theatre Command reassured residents of Matazu Local Government Area and neighbouring communities that troops remain committed to protecting law‑abiding citizens and denying terrorists and bandits freedom of action within the region. Members of the public were encouraged to continue providing credible and timely information to assist security agencies in tracking and apprehending terrorists and criminal elements. Troops will continue to sustain pressure on criminal elements until the operational objectives are fully achieved.
The offensive comes at a time of intensifying military action across the North‑West. On June 13, the Nigerian Air Force carried out airstrikes on bandit hideouts in Zamfara State, killing several armed fighters. On June 12, troops rescued nine kidnap victims in a gun battle along the Katsina‑Kankara highway. The back‑to‑back operations suggest a coordinated regional push to regain the initiative against criminal groups that have enjoyed near‑impunity for years.
The death of General Abubakar, a man who once stood before cameras to project the strength of Nigeria’s military, has become a rallying cry for renewed action. Whether Operation CLEAN SWEEP III will succeed in permanently dismantling the terror networks in Matazu LGA remains an open question. But as troops sweep through the Dikkawa Hills and the forests of Adua, Nasarawa and Karaduwa, one message is clear: the military has chosen to respond to the killing of one of its own not with speeches, but with firepower.
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