Boko Haram Resumes Major Attacks After Truce Collapse and US Troop Withdrawal

For 17 years, Boko Haram’s insurgency has inflicted widespread destruction on communities across northeast Nigeria. Although attacks had recently declined in intensity, the group has resumed targeting soldiers and carrying out abductions after a ceasefire agreement between militants and the governments of two states collapsed — coinciding with Washington’s reduction of its military presence in the country.

The Ngwagwimi attack and unconfirmed casualty figures

Nigerian media reported on Sunday, citing local sources, that approximately 10 soldiers were killed in a Boko Haram assault near Ngwagwimi — a town located in the Lake Chad area of Diffa, a region jointly administered by Nigeria, Cameroon, and Chad, where multiple Boko Haram camps are situated.

Witnesses described the incident in social media posts, stating that 10 soldiers and four members of the National Guard were killed.

The official Nigerian News Agency did not release a confirmed death toll but acknowledged fatalities “following an attack by Boko Haram elements on the outskirts of Ngwagwimi.”

Tinubu blames regional instability; militants demand prisoner releases

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu issued sharp public statements linking Nigeria’s worsening security crisis to instability in the Sahel region — encompassing Burkina Faso, Niger, and Mali.

He disclosed that extremists who carried out a school abduction demanded the federal government release their detained members.

Two-decade insurgency and factional fragmentation

Armed rebellion has plagued northeast Nigeria since 2009, initially led by Boko Haram and later joined by its breakaway rival faction, the Islamic State in West Africa Province.

Leaked official documents from Nigeria’s State Security Service, published by the outlet “The Cable,” revealed additional drivers behind the recent escalation: the collapse of the aforementioned ceasefire between militants and the two state governments. The documents warn of imminent large-scale attacks planned by Boko Haram in Michika Local Government Area of Adamawa State and Askira-Uba Local Government Area of Borno State.

According to the memo, extremists are plotting to abduct senior government officials, local council members, district heads, pastors, and residents of affected communities.

The alleged link between the planned attacks and the reported breakdown of the ceasefire with the two named states constitutes one of the memo’s central claims — though it remains unconfirmed by independent government verification.

Alleged links to failed 2025 coup plot

New documents also allege that some suspects in the failed 2025 coup conspiracy discussed recruiting former Boko Haram fighters and members of the Civilian Joint Task Force to bolster targeted operations.

National emergency declaration and US military intervention

Rising deadly attacks and abductions over recent months prompted President Tinubu to declare a nationwide security emergency in 2025 and led former US President Donald Trump to authorize a military intervention.

Trump characterized Christians in Nigeria as victims of “genocide” perpetrated by extremists — a claim strongly denied by Abuja and most experts, who note that violence affects both Christians and Muslims indiscriminately.

Joint air raids and subsequent US troop drawdown

In May, US and Nigerian forces conducted joint air raids in the Lake Chad region of northeast Nigeria, killing nearly 200 Islamic State fighters — including the group’s second-highest-ranking member.

However, in early July, the commander of US Africa Command (AFRICOM) announced that the United States had reduced its military footprint in Nigeria by withdrawing the majority of its 200-strong contingent deployed as part of a special operation against the northeast insurgency. Cooperation was subsequently limited to continued intelligence sharing and logistical support for complex missions.

Aftermath of US withdrawal and ongoing abduction crises

The American withdrawal left a security vacuum and failed to resolve pre-existing abduction crises. On 23 July, relatives of hostages and other concerned residents gathered at the Nigerian Union of Journalists’ Press Centre to mark 100 days since the abduction and renew demands for the hostages’ release.

Concerns are mounting over the fate of 78 schoolchildren abducted in separate attacks in Askira-Uba. Forty-two students were taken during the May assault on Musa Primary and Secondary School.

On 29 June, suspected armed assailants stormed the Government Day Secondary School and abducted 36 students and one teacher.