Following months-long counter-terrorism operation, two top leaders of Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina fi-Biladis Sudan, an Al-Qaeda affiliate in Nigeria, have been apprehended, the Federal Government announced on Saturday in Abuja.
Briefing journalists, the National Security Adviser, retired AIG Nuhu Ribadu, said the intelligence-led operation was carried out between May and July 2025 in collaboration with security and intelligence agencies.
He gave their names as Mahmud Muhammad Usman, also known as Abu Bara’a, Abbas or Mukhtar, identified as the self-styled Emir of Ansaru, and his deputy, Mahmud al-Nigeri, also known as Mallam Mamuda.
In an official statement, Ribadu reported that Abu Bara was responsible for coordinating terrorist sleeper cells throughout Nigeria.
He also masterminded high-profile kidnappings and armed robberies, which were used to fund terrorist activities.
Ribadu further stated that Bara’s deputy, Mamuda, led a cell known as “Mahmudawa” operating in the vicinity of Kainji National Park.
According to the report, Mamuda trained with foreign jihadist instructors in Libya between 2013 and 2015.
Ribadu said:“The targeted operation, which was conducted between May and July 2025, led to the capture of two top ANSARU leaders who have been responsible for masterminding several terrorist attacks against Nigeria over the past years. The first is Mahmud Muhammad Usman (aka Abu Bara’a/Abbas/Mukhtar), the self-styled Emir of ANSARU.
“He is the coordinator of various terrorist sleeper cells across Nigeria. He is also the mastermind of several high-profile kidnappings and armed robberies used to finance terrorism over the years.
“The second is Mahmud al-Nigeri (aka Mallam Mamuda), Abu Bara’s proclaimed Chief of Staff and Deputy. He is the leader of the so-called “Mahmudawa” cell hiding out in and around the Kainji National Park, straddling Niger and Kwara States up to the Benin Republic. Mamuda trained in Libya between 2013 and 2015 under foreign jihadist instructors from Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria, specialising in weapons handling and IED fabrication.”
The NSA said the two men had been on Nigeria’s most-wanted list for years and were also internationally wanted.
According to him, the suspects were responsible for attacks including the 2022 Kuje prison break, the attack on Niger’s uranium facility, the 2013 abduction of French engineer Francis Collomp, and the 2019 kidnapping of Alhaji Musa Umar Uba, Magajin Garin Daura.
“They were also behind the abduction of the Emir of Wawa and they maintain active links with terrorist groups across the Maghreb, particularly in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso. d The two men, who are wanted internationally, are currently in custody, ” Ribadu said.
According to the NSA, their capture dismantled Ansaru’s central command structure and marked a significant achievement in Nigeria’s fight against terrorism.
He added that security forces recovered materials and digital evidence during the operation, which are undergoing forensic analysis.
“This strike has effectively dismantled its central command while paving the path for the complete annihilation of the group. 8. Let me use this opportunity to inform the public that, in the course of the operation, our security forces captured and recovered valuable actionable intelligence.
“These include a cache of materials and digital evidence which are all now undergoing forensic analysis. The findings from the analysis are expected to support our ongoing efforts to exploit this success, bring them to justice, and completely bring them to justice, and completely annihilate the remnants of ANSARU networks and disrupt their foreign collaborators,” Ribadu also said.
He urged Nigerians to remain vigilant and provide timely information to authorities about the activities of the terrorists and other criminals.
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