Borno, Mar 19: Nigerian troops have killed at least 80 jihadist fighters in a major counter-offensive in the country’s northeast, as security forces continue to battle a long-running insurgency in Borno state.
According to the military, the operation took place in Mallam Fatori, near the Niger border, where insurgents launched a coordinated overnight attack on army positions. The attackers, believed to be from Boko Haram or the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), reportedly advanced in large numbers on foot and used armed drones in an attempt to breach defences.
Army spokesperson Sani Uba said troops successfully repelled the assault, killing “no fewer than 80 terrorists,” including three senior commanders. The Nigerian Air Force, along with allied air support from neighbouring Niger, carried out rapid strike operations to neutralise the attackers.
Four Nigerian soldiers were injured during the clash, but no fatalities were reported among government forces.
The confrontation comes just days after a series of suicide bombings in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, which killed at least 23 people. The recent surge in violence highlights a renewed push by extremist groups to intensify attacks on both military and civilian targets.
Despite being weakened since their peak around 2015, Boko Haram and ISWAP have continued to carry out deadly operations as part of their campaign to establish an Islamist caliphate in the region.
Military officials said the latest attack was part of a broader pattern of coordinated assaults on security installations. Defence Chief General Olufemi Oluyede, who visited Maiduguri following the recent bombings, stressed the need for increased vigilance and cooperation with local communities.
“We cannot defeat these threats alone,” he said, urging civilians to remain alert and support security efforts.
The insurgency, which began in 2009, has resulted in more than 40,000 deaths and displaced approximately two million people, according to United Nations estimates.
In response to the ongoing threat, international support has also increased. The United States recently deployed around 200 troops to Nigeria to provide technical and training assistance to local forces.
While the Nigerian military continues to claim tactical victories, the persistence of attacks underscores the difficulty of fully eliminating insurgent networks in the region.