As many as 200 militants were killed on Sunday in a turf battle between rival jihadist factions in north-east Nigeria.
Fighting between Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters erupted in the village of Dogon Chiku on the shores of Lake Chad, a volatile area at the junction of Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon.
The Lake Chad basin’s riverine routes are used as operational zones by jihadists, who also raise funds by taxing fishers, loggers and herders.
Reports say ISWAP took the heavier losses and that Boko Haram seized several boats used in the assault. “From the toll we got, around 200 ISWAP terrorists were killed in the fight,” Babakura Kolo, a member of a vigilante group that cooperates with the Nigerian military, told Agence France-Presse. A Nigerian intelligence source told AFP the casualty figure was “more than 150”.
ISWAP formed as a 2016 splinter from Boko Haram and aligned with Islamic State. Since the split, the factions have clashed repeatedly across the Lake Chad basin and other parts of northern Nigeria, as multiple non-state actors vie for territory and influence.
The lake has shrunk by more than 90% since the 1960s, according to the UN Environment Programme; as water recedes, new routes and contested territory open up.
Analysts long viewed ISWAP as stronger and better resourced, while Boko Haram has been effective at holding territory around Lake Chad. Sunday’s confrontation is among the deadliest reported between the groups.
In May 2021, ISWAP assaulted Sambisa Forest — Boko Haram’s former stronghold and the site where abducted schoolgirls were held. Abubakar Shekau, Boko Haram’s notorious leader, is believed to have died during a clash with ISWAP there.
In late 2022 and early 2023, Boko Haram mounted major raids on two ISWAP bases in Borno state, seizing weapons and reportedly killing more than 100 ISWAP fighters and wounding dozens, according to local papers.
Since the 2009 extrajudicial killing of Mohammed Yusuf, the conflict linked to these jihadist groups has killed more than 40,000 people and displaced around 2 million in Nigeria’s predominantly Muslim north-east.
