Intense clashes between Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) militants have left around 200 people dead in northeast Nigeria’s volatile Lake Chad region, according to intelligence and militia sources. The brutal fighting erupted on Sunday in Dogon Chiku, a strategic area along the Lake Chad shores, as the rival jihadist factions battled for territorial control.
Members of a local anti-jihadist militia assisting Nigerian forces confirmed that approximately 200 ISWAP fighters were killed during the confrontation, while Boko Haram reportedly lost only four men. A Nigerian intelligence source monitoring the situation estimated more than 150 deaths and described the infighting as “good news” for security forces.
The two extremist groups have been locked in a deadly struggle since 2016, following a split over ideological differences. Much of their fighting centers around the Lake Chad Basin, where both factions seek control of key territories.
Meanwhile, in Nigeria’s northwest, farmers in Zamfara and Sokoto States say armed bandits have imposed “harvest taxes,” forcing villagers to pay cash or hand over part of their crops to access their farmlands. Communities report living under constant fear as bandits mount checkpoints, collect levies, and punish those unable to comply a growing threat to food security in the region.
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