By ZAKAA LAZARUS
The military high command (DHQ) has identified Shariff Umar as the masterminder behind the recent suicide bombings and attempted attacks in the North East.
Lieutenant Colonel Sani Uba, the Media Information Officer of Headquarters Joint Task Force Operation HADIN KAI (OPHK), which oversees military operations in the North East, in a statement on Saturday said that 14 suspects linked to suicide bombing activities were arrested during cordon-and-search operations in the Kalmari area of Maiduguri on December 31.
Uba said that following the arrests, detailed identification and investigative processes established the structure, roles, and operational linkages of the terror cell.
He said: “During the investigation, a suspected suicide bomber currently in custody, Ibrahim Muhammad, unequivocally identified Shariff Umar (also known as “Yusuf”) as the ringleader and coordinator of the terror network. According to consistent and corroborated statements, Shariff Umar was responsible for recruiting, preparing, directing, and dispatching suicide bombers to assigned targets, as well as coordinating logistics and delivery of Improvised Explosive Device (IED) components.
“Investigations further revealed that Shariff Umar directly coordinated the suicide bombing attack at the Gamboru Market Mosque on 24 December 2025, during which his accomplice, Adamu (now deceased), detonated a suicide vest. He was also identified as the coordinator of the foiled suicide bombing attempt in Damaturu, personally handing over IED components to the suicide bomber in Maiduguri.
“Additional links within the network were established, including the involvement of Shariff Umar’s wife, Yagana Modu, and the confirmation by his stepdaughter, Amina, who admitted to previously seeing the suspect bomber within their residence. These findings significantly strengthened the investigative trail and exposed the domestic and community-based concealment methods employed by terrorist facilitators.”
