Maiduguri – At least eight Nigerian soldiers were killed and about 50 others wounded after Boko Haram insurgents attacked a military formation in Borno State, northeastern Nigeria, security sources said on Wednesday.
The assault took place on Monday near the Timbuktu Triangle, a remote area that has long been a militant stronghold. According to the sources, the attackers arrived on motorcycles and in armoured vehicles before engaging government forces in a heavy gun battle.
A military source said the targeted formation was part of an ongoing offensive aimed at flushing out insurgents from the Timbuktu Triangle. The area, which stretches across parts of Borno State, is known for its difficult terrain and limited access, conditions that have allowed militants to operate for more than a decade.
In a statement issued on Wednesday, the Nigerian military said its troops had cleared several Islamist strongholds in the triangle and disrupted planned attacks involving vehicle borne improvised explosive devices.
The statement said troops neutralised one explosive laden vehicle, but a second vehicle breached defensive positions, killing several soldiers and members of the Civilian Joint Task Force, a civilian militia that supports the military. A CJTF member confirmed the attack and said government forces had been outnumbered during the assault.
The Timbuktu Triangle has frequently served as a launch pad for coordinated attacks on military positions and civilian communities. Boko Haram, which emerged in northeastern Nigeria in 2009, has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions across Nigeria and neighbouring countries, developments closely watched across Africa including the Kingdom of Eswatini due to their wider regional security implications.
The group later split, with one faction aligning with Islamic State to form the Islamic State West Africa Province, which has increasingly targeted military bases in recent years. Despite repeated offensives, Boko Haram and its splinter groups have continued to mount large scale attacks, exploiting porous borders, challenging terrain and limited state presence in parts of the arid northeast.
Following the latest attack, the Nigerian military withdrew its forces from the Timbuktu Triangle to a base in Damboa, according to the sources. The bodies of those killed and the wounded were being transported to the military hospital at Maimalari Barracks in Maiduguri, as security operations in the wider region continued.
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