The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) has dismissed claims by a senior United States official that American forces seized a massive cache of intelligence materials during a counter-terrorism operation in Nigeria and transported them out of the country.
Instead, the Nigerian military clarified that the electronic intelligence was voluntarily handed over to the United States as part of an existing security partnership between both countries.
Speaking in an interview with Premium Times, the Director of Defence Information, Brigadier General Samalia Uba, explained that the materials consisted of declassified intelligence gathered during previous counter-terrorism operations conducted by the Armed Forces of Nigeria.
According to Uba, the documents and electronic materials were shared under established bilateral security cooperation and were not recovered by US troops during an independent military operation in Nigeria.
“The materials were given to the US,” Uba said, stressing that the exchange was part of the longstanding counter-terrorism collaboration between Abuja and Washington.
His comments represent the Nigerian military’s first official response to remarks made by a senior White House official regarding the operation.
US Official Claimed American Forces Seized Intelligence
The controversy began after Sebastian Gorka, the US Deputy Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Counterterrorism at the National Security Council, claimed American special forces killed 199 terrorists during an operation in Nigeria and recovered what he described as an unprecedented volume of electronic intelligence.
Speaking in late June, Gorka said the operation produced the largest haul of enemy electronic materials since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States.
“I watched our operators kill 199 jihadis in one operation and seize an unprecedented volume of intelligence materials,” Gorka said.
He further claimed that the quantity of intelligence recovered was so significant that an additional aircraft had to be deployed to transport the materials.
“From that Nigerian raid, we needed an extra plane to bring home all the electronic material that we captured in those camps. The haul was three times bigger than any enemy electronics haul since 9/11,” he added.
Although Gorka did not identify the specific mission, his remarks appeared to reference the joint Nigeria-US operation announced in May, during which ISWAP commander Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, also known as Abubakar Mainok, was reportedly eliminated.
DHQ Clarifies Intelligence Was Shared, Not Captured
Reacting to the claims, Brigadier General Uba insisted that the intelligence exchange should not be interpreted as evidence that US forces independently recovered sensitive materials from terrorists operating in Nigeria.
He explained that the information was supplied by Nigerian authorities under existing intelligence-sharing arrangements aimed at strengthening joint counter-terrorism efforts.
“It is not a new operation. We have previously communicated our highly successful joint operations in May. Nigeria-US joint operations and collaboration are very much on course,” Uba stated.
Foreign Affairs Ministry Defends Cooperation
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also defended the intelligence-sharing arrangement, describing it as a routine aspect of international counter-terrorism cooperation.
The ministry’s spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, said Nigeria provided the materials to assist US authorities in understanding terrorist networks and improving coordinated responses to security threats.
“I don’t think it is an indictment that we shared this information with them,” Ebienfa said.
“Sharing intelligence is part of the counter-terrorism cooperation Nigeria has with the US. We share intelligence with them, especially with the arrival of their troops on our soil to help combat terrorist attacks.”
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He added that the Federal Government remains committed to tackling insecurity through strategic partnerships rather than publicising every aspect of its military cooperation with foreign allies.
Sanctions Followed Joint Operation
The clarification comes weeks after the United States imposed sanctions on Lagos-based bureau de change operator Mukhtar Adamu over allegations that he facilitated financial transactions for the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
The sanctions also targeted Nine To Nine Exchange Bureau De Change Limited, Generation Currency Bureau De Change Limited and Manhattan Bureau De Change Limited.
Nigeria later imposed corresponding sanctions on Adamu and the affected companies as part of efforts to disrupt terrorist financing networks.