On February 2, 2022, Mallam Ibrahim Maliya Saidu, a deputy commander of the Civilian Joint Task Force died when his vehicle ran over an underbelly IED on the Biu-Mandaragirau-Damboa-Maiduguri Road axis in Borno State. Underbelly IEDs planted on roads leading toward concentrations of fighters of the Islamic State West Africa Province have recently become commonplace, some of the payloads of which are directional and are usually initiated by pressure plates. These IEDs indiscriminately target both military forces and civilian vehicles in the area. The continuing attacks by armed groups such as ISWAP and Boko Haram throughout 2022 has forced the Nigerian Army to accelerate its operations to clear terrorist centers in the northeast of the country, as part of Operation Desert Sanity and Operation Lake Sanity. The scene of the fighting in Borno is also characterized by SVBIEDS, rocket fire, and an assortment of IEDs. The army’s raids on militant camps have led to an increase in the use of weapons, including improvised items, as a tactic during retreat and redeployment.
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