Nigerian Army loses Three Commanding Military Officers to Insurgency in one Week

The Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) has claimed responsibility for a series of attacks on Nigerian military bases in the northeastern state of Borno over the past week. These attacks have killed dozens of soldiers.

ISWAP claimed the attacks by releasing a statement through the Amaq news agency which is affiliated with ISIS.

The group claims it attacked four military bases in one night. Nigerian media outlets have reported on some of these attacks, however their reported death tolls differ from ISWAP’s claims. In an unusual turn of events, the insurgent group also reported the deaths of many of its own fighters during clashes with Nigerian security forces.

The Nigerian military has said that it had successfully repelled the ISWAP attacks on several camps in Borno.

ISWAP’s attack on Konduga killed one senior military officer and two junior soldiers. They also burned the army base along with 11 military vehicles, and seized 68 motorcycles. They also claimed to have burned down a police station in the city and killed four officers.

In Marte, Amaq reported that ISWAP attacked the military base and took control of some parts of it. They also claim to have killed three military officers, wounded others, and burned and seized several vehicles and weapons.

The group also claimed responsibility for a series of attacks in the town of Jakana on March 5 where they burned down a military camp and killed three soldiers. ISWAP also attacked military bases in   Mainok and Kawuri, using heavy machinery to destroy a military vehicle and killing  some soldiers.  They also seized a large number of weapons.

The group has also  claimed it drove soldiers out of a camp in Dalori before setting it on fire, about 15 kilometres from Maiduguri.

Army Casualties

Three senior military commanders have been identified among the recent casualties in Nigeria’s northeast. Major U.I. Mairiga, who oversaw operations at the Mayenti base, lost his life alongside Lt-Col Umar Faruq, the officer in charge of both the Kukawa base and the 101 Brigade. Lt-Col S.I. Iliyasu, based in Konduga, was also among those killed.

Over the past three months, commanding officers at bases in Damasak, Kukawa, and Bama have all been fatally struck – either during direct assaults on their positions or in ambushes staged by insurgents during clearance missions.

The most recent tragedy unfolded on March 9, when armed insurgents stormed a military installation in Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State in the early hours of the morning, around midnight. Lt-Col Umar Faruq was killed in the assault, along with a number of his soldiers.

Days earlier, on March 1, 2026, Major Umar Ibrahim Mairiga fell during a Boko Haram assault on his base in Mayenti, Bama Local Government Area. Security sources indicate he mounted a fierce defense before being overwhelmed by the attackers. That attack followed soon after a separate incident in Jakana, Kaga Local Government Area.

On March 6, Boko Haram fighters struck again in Konduga, killing Lt-Col S.I. Iliyasu, commander of the 222 Battalion, along with several soldiers. A lieutenant and other personnel from the 21 Special Armoured Brigade were also reported killed in what appeared to be a well-coordinated ambush.

Earlier in the year, on January 28, insurgents targeted a military formation near Damasak, killing seven soldiers, including the commanding officer, in an ambush close to the town.

The violence is not unprecedented. In October 2025, the Nigerian Army confirmed the death of Lt-Col Aliyu Saidu Paiko, commanding officer of the 202 Battalion, during a confrontation with Boko Haram fighters in Bama Local Government Area.

Just last Wednesday, a coordinated strike on a military base in Ngoshe, Gwoza Local Government Area, left fourteen soldiers dead, including a senior officer. Over 100 civilians were also abducted during the raid.

Mike Ejiofor, a security analyst and former Director of the Department of State Services, described the frequency of commanding officers being killed as deeply troubling.

“That should be of serious concern if you consider what it takes to train military officers,” he said, stressing that years of investment go into developing officers of that rank.

He argued that lasting solutions would require structural reform, particularly the creation of state-level police forces. While acknowledging that such a move would necessitate changes to the constitution, he maintained that a committed National Assembly could move the process forward swiftly.

“It is one of the surest ways to defeat banditry, Boko Haram and terrorism,” he said.