FG arrests Kuje prison break masterminds, top Al-Qaeda leaders

Troops

The Federal Government on Saturday announced the arrest of two top leaders of Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina fi-Biladis Sudan, an Al-Qaeda affiliate in Nigeria, following a months-long counter-terrorism operation.

The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, disclosed this at a press briefing held at the Office of the National Security Adviser in Abuja.

Ribadu said the intelligence-led operation was carried out between May and July 2025 in collaboration with security and intelligence agencies.

Those arrested are 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. Punch