Finally, Nigerian authorities nab top Al-Qaeda linked leaders

By: Olalekan Abudu

Security agents in Nigeria just scored a big win. After months of gathering intel, they finally caught two big fish from the scary Ansaru terrorist group, you know, the one linked to Al-Qaeda. The arrests? Down to a clever operation stretching from May to July 2025.

The captured men? Mahmud Muhammad Usman, who goes by all those names like Abu Bara’a or Mukhtar – basically, Ansaru’s self-proclaimed kingpin. And his right-hand man, Mahmud al-Nigeri, known as Mallam Mamuda. Ribadu, the National Security Adviser, spilled the beans Saturday in Abuja. He called it a intelligence-led triumph, done with local and foreign agencies.

Usman, Ribadu said, ran sleeper cells across Nigeria. He coordinated those awful kidnappings and robberies, using the money to fund terror. And Mamuda? He led the “Mahmudawa” cell near Kainji National Park, the one stretching into Niger and Benin’s borders. Fun fact: Mamuda even trained in Libya way back – between 2013 and 2015 – under instructors from Egypt and Tunisia. Cool, right? Not really.

Ribadu told reporters Saturday: “These guys? They were behind so many attacks. The chaotic 2022 Kuje prison break. That attack on Niger’s uranium facility. Even the abduction of that French engineer, Francis Collomp, back in 2013. And don’t forget Alhaji Musa Umar Uba’s kidnapping in 2019.” He paused, then added, “They also grabbed the Emir of Wawa. And they were chatting with terrorists in Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso.”

Ribadu called the arrests a huge blow to Ansaru’s command structure. He seemed relieved, honestly. But he warned citizens to stay sharp, saying, “Keep eyes open… and to drop a line if you see anything suspicious.”

So now, these two are locked up. Maybe this means less chaos ahead? Time will tell. But for now, Nigeria’s security folks are breathing a little easier.