Olayiwola Matthew
A brutal turf war between Boko Haram and rival militants from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) has left more than 200 terrorists dead in the village of Dogon Chiku, along the shores of Lake Chad. The clashes, which erupted over the weekend, underscore the deepening rift between the two jihadist factions competing for control of territory and influence across the volatile Lake Chad Basin.
Dogon Chiku, located at the intersection of Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Cameroon, has long served as a strategic haven for extremist groups. The area’s riverine corridors provide crucial supply routes and sources of illicit revenue, as terrorists extort taxes from fishers, loggers, and herders.
According to reports, the latest confrontation was one of the bloodiest in recent years, with ISWAP suffering heavy losses. “From the toll we got, around 200 ISWAP terrorists were killed in the fight,” said Babakura Kolo, a member of a civilian vigilante group allied with the Nigerian military, in a statement to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
A Nigerian intelligence source confirmed the fighting, describing it as “good news” and estimating the death toll at “more than 150.” Boko Haram reportedly captured several boats used by ISWAP during the assault.
The two factions have been at odds since 2016, when ISWAP broke away from Boko Haram and pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS). Their rivalry has frequently turned violent, particularly in the Lake Chad region, which has become a key battleground for both sides.
Although ISWAP had long been considered the more organized and resourceful of the two, Boko Haram has maintained a stronghold around Lake Chad. Sunday’s confrontation may be the deadliest between them to date.
In May 2021, ISWAP fighters launched a major offensive on Boko Haram’s Sambisa Forest base—an assault that led to the death of Boko Haram’s notorious leader, Abubakar Shekau, who reportedly detonated explosives rather than surrender.
Between December 2022 and January 2023, Boko Haram struck back, raiding two ISWAP bases in Borno State. Local reports from The Guardian Nigeria and The Punch indicated that over 100 ISWAP fighters were killed and 35 injured, with large caches of weapons seized.
The decade-long insurgency, which began after the extrajudicial killing of Boko Haram founder Mohammed Yusuf in 2009, has killed more than 40,000 people and displaced over two million across northeastern Nigeria and neighboring countries.
As the Lake Chad region continues to shrink—having lost over 90% of its surface area since the 1960s, according to the UN Environment Programme—new land routes are emerging, creating fresh opportunities for militant movements and intensifying the fight for control in one of Africa’s most unstable regions.