Terror: Army Major, Several Soldiers Killed as ISWAP Overruns Borno Military Base

Suspected militants from Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) have attacked a military base in Borno State, killing an Army Major and several other soldiers.

Military sources said the assault took place in the early hours of Sunday at a Forward Operating Base at Banki junction along the Bama–Gwoza Road. The attackers were reported to have arrived in several groups and opened fire on the facility.

A Major identified as U.I. Mairiga was among those killed. The exact number of casualties has not been officially confirmed. Sources indicated that some soldiers died during the exchange, while others fled into surrounding bushland.

Bodies of the deceased personnel are being moved to the 7 Division Military Hospital in Maiduguri.

The latest incident follows a series of attacks on military positions in the state. In February, insurgents struck an Army outpost in Jakana, Kaga Local Government Area, along the Maiduguri–Damaturu Road. Military sources reported significant casualties and the destruction of armoured vehicles during that assault.

Days before that attack, seven soldiers, including a newly promoted Lieutenant Colonel, were killed in an ambush while travelling from Maiduguri to Damasak in Mobbar Local Government Area. According to security sources, the convoy was hit with explosives and heavy gunfire. Several personnel were injured, and others were declared missing.

ISWAP, an Islamic State-affiliated faction that emerged from the broader Boko Haram insurgency, has expanded its presence in communities around Lake Chad in recent years, drawing in defectors from rival factions and intensifying attacks on security formations in the North-East.