Lieutenant Colonel Muhammad Abu Ali (August 15, 1980 - November 4, 2016) was Nigerian Army officer who Commanded the Army's 272 Tank Battalion. He was killed in an ambush by Boko Haram in Fatori, Borno State.
Ali graduated from Command Secondary School, Jos in 1997 and was admitted to the Nigerian Defence Academy in 1998 as a member of the 50th Regular Course. He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant into the Nigerian Army Armour Corps in September 2003. His father is Brig-Gen Abu Ali, now the Etsu of Bassa-Nge Kingdom in Kogi State).
He participated in the United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), United Missions in Darfur (UNMO), and received an accelerrated promotion from the rank of Major to Lieutenant Colonel, receiving a gallantry award by the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Yusuf Buratai in September 2015.
Ali received the Chief of Army Staff award in Gamboru for exceptional bravery from Lt Gen Tukur Yusuf Buratai on September 9, 2015 for his role in the fight against Boko Haram.
Lt Col Abu Ali along with 6 other soldiers were ambushed and killed by Boko Haram on November 4, 2016. He was buried on November 7, 2016 at the National Military Cemetery, Abuja.