At least 27 Nigerian soldiers, including their commander, were killed in a suicide bombing attack carried out by jihadists in the country’s northeast, military sources confirmed on Sunday.
The deadly assault took place on Friday when Nigerian troops launched an offensive against a stronghold of militants affiliated with the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) in a region between Borno and Yobe states.
The attack occurred around 2030 GMT, when a suicide bomber, hiding within thick foliage, rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into an advancing convoy of soldiers. Several other troops were critically wounded in the assault, with some of them in serious condition, sources said. The military death toll could rise as more soldiers remain in critical care.
“It was dark, which made it difficult for the troops to have a clear view of the surroundings,” one military officer said, describing the challenging conditions surrounding the attack. The officers, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, noted that the incident is among the deadliest suicide attacks targeting Nigerian soldiers in recent years.
The ISWAP, which split from Boko Haram in 2016, has since become the dominant militant faction in the region, capturing key areas including the Timbuktu Triangle and Sambisa Forest, previously under Boko Haram control. The group is notorious for using explosive-laden vehicles and roadside mines to target military personnel.
The ongoing insurgency in the region has been devastating, claiming over 40,000 lives and displacing approximately two million people in the northeastern states of Nigeria. The violence has also spread across borders, impacting neighboring Niger, Chad, and Cameroon, and has led to the establishment of a regional force aimed at combating the militants.
