Nigeria’s Woro massacre in early February 2026 was a large‑scale attack on two mainly Muslim farming communities that left Muslim and Christian civilians dead, including adults and children, community leaders, and people living on the economic margins. Local leaders...
MEA RISK’s SHIELD & ALERT notifications: Access requires installing Shield & Alert mobile application. More info on S&A here or click here to signup and install
Nigeria Adjusts Airstrike Strategy Under Expanded U.S. Security Cooperation
Nigeria is adjusting how it conducts air operations against armed groups as part of an updated security arrangement with the United States. Under the new framework, Nigerian fighter aircraft will increasingly rely on U.S. reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering...
Nigeria: Questions Mount Over U.S. Airstrikes in Northern Nigeria
By Leslie Varenne, MondAfrique: The American strikes carried out in Nigeria on Christmas Day raise serious questions. Beyond the confusion surrounding the objectives of the operation, inconsistencies in official statements, and the unclear nature of the targets, the...
U.S. Immigration Policy and the Changing Landscape of Africa-U.S. Travel
As the United States prepares to implement a new round of immigration and visa policy changes in 2026, the effects are being felt across Africa and parts of the Middle East. What began as a technical overhaul of screening and enforcement procedures has evolved into a...
Nigerian president Tinubu under pressure to avoid war with northern neighbor Niger
By Camille Malpat with Aminu Abubakar in Kano, Nigeria: Political leaders in Nigeria are urging President Bola Tinubu to reconsider a threatened military intervention against junta leaders in neighbouring Niger, ahead of a Sunday deadline to reinstate the country's...
Nigeria grapples with end of fuel subsidy
By Alexandre Martins Lopes: Nigerians are struggling with surging fuel prices after newly elected President Bola Tinubu declared an end to popular subsidies, a move analysts and experts said was long overdue. On his first day in office, Tinubu kept to his campaign...
Nigerian soldiers killed in ISWAP ambush in Borno
Posted On 9 July 2020
UPDATE July 9, 2020 – The death toll from a jihadist attack on a military convoy in northeast Nigeria has risen from 23 to 35, while 30 troops are still missing, security sources said Thursday. Fighters linked to the so-called Islamic State group ambushed the convoy on Tuesday at Bulabulin village, about 40 kilometres (25 miles) from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state. Twenty-three soldiers were initially thought to have been killed in Tuesday’s attack, and many were listed as missing. But security sources said more bodies had now been found in nearby bush. “We lost 35 soldiers from the ambush. Eighteen others were injured while 30 are still missing. Their fate is not known,” a security source told AFP. “More bodies were recovered in the bush by rescue teams which led to a rise in the deaths,” he said. Another source confirmed the new toll. “Thirty-five bodies of troops were recovered as … search teams combed the area around the scene of the ambush. Another 30 have not been accounted for.
It is not known whether they are dead or alive,” he said. He said the jihadists torched a mine-resistant vehicle and carted away eight guntrucks, guns and communication equipment. “It was a surprise attack. The terrorists hid inside heaps of foliage they gathered along the road and opened fire on the convoy as it passed. It was a close-range ambush,” he said.
The troops were returning from patrol and clearance operation against the insurgents when they came under attack. The Nigerian military confirmed the ambush on Wednesday but insisted only two soldiers were killed and four wounded. It said 17 insurgents were killed in the subsequent fighting. Nigeria’s army has repeatedly claimed that the insurgency has been largely defeated and frequently underplays any losses. The decade-long conflict in northeast Nigeria has killed 36,000 people and forced around two million from their homes. Fighters from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) splintered from the main Boko Haram group in 2016 and have become a dominant force. ISWAP has focused most of its attacks on military targets but has increasingly launched bloody assaults on civilians in recent months.
AFP
Recent News from Nigeria
Nigeria: More than 160 people killed in Muslim communities in Kwara State
More than 160 people were killed in predominantly Muslim farming communities in Kwara State, Nigeria, after villagers reportedly refused to accept an extremist group’s strict religious rule.
Nigeria Adjusts Airstrike Strategy Under Expanded U.S. Security Cooperation
Nigeria is modifying how it conducts air operations against armed groups under a revised security arrangement with the United States. The new framework places greater emphasis on U.S. intelligence and reconnaissance support while shifting operational responsibility to Nigerian forces. The approach reflects Abuja’s effort to balance external assistance with domestic control amid ongoing security challenges in the country’s northwest.
Nigeria: Questions Mount Over U.S. Airstrikes in Northern Nigeria
The U.S. airstrikes carried out in northern Nigeria on Christmas Day have triggered confusion and skepticism across the region. Conflicting statements from Washington and Abuja, uncertainty over the identity of the targeted groups, and reports from strike locations where no militants were found have raised serious questions about the operation’s objectives. In an already fragile security environment, the lack of clarity risks adding instability rather than addressing Nigeria’s complex security challenges.
