Mamman Nur, who controls a faction of the Boko Haram, is next in notoriety to feared leader Abubakar Shekau.
He is believed to control the Lake Chad axis of the sect, which in recent time has emerged the new deadly haven of the terrorist group and perhaps their major base after the capture of the Sambisa Forest in December 2016.
In a statement by the military authority on Friday, Mamman Nur was said to have been injured in an ongoing bombardment on his enclave.
The statement by Col Onyema Nwachukwu, the Deputy Director Public Relations of Operation Lafiya Dole (the military counter-insurgency operation in the North-East), read: “Ongoing artillery and aerial bombardments of Boko Haram enclaves in the Lake Chad region by troops of Operation Lafiya Dole has continued to yield positive results.
“Currently an evaluation report of the ongoing operation indicates that a major factional leader of the terrorists group, Mamman Nur has been fatally injured in the bombardment as he and his sub-commanders fled from the onslaught.”
The statement added: “Several of his foot soldiers have also been killed by troops, while many of the insurgents who escaped are now surrendering to Republic of Niger Defence Forces, following the Amnesty granted the insurgents by the Government of Niger Republic.”