Armed extremist attacks in northeastern Nigeria have killed dozens of people, including construction workers and security personnel, in incidents targeting a development site and a military base…reports Asian Lite News
Armed extremists in northeastern Nigeria killed dozens of people earlier this week in separate attacks on a construction site and a military installation, security officials said on Saturday, underscoring the continuing instability in a region long affected by insurgency.
Gunmen killed at least 25 construction workers during an ambush on Thursday in the town of Sabon Gari in Borno State, according to a senior officer of the Borno State Police Command. Authorities in Nigeria often decline to publicly confirm death tolls in attacks, citing security concerns.
“It is a devastating loss, and the hallmarks point directly to Boko Haram insurgents who have long resisted developmental projects in these areas,” the police official said.
Boko Haram, Nigeria’s homegrown terrorist group, took up arms in 2009 to fight Western education and impose radical laws. Over the years, its campaign of violence has targeted civilians, security forces and infrastructure, particularly in the northeast.
The insurgency now includes an offshoot of the Daesh group, known as ISWAP. The conflict has spilled into Nigeria’s northern neighbours, including Niger, killing about 35,000 civilians and displacing more than 2 million people, according to the United Nations.
Abdurrahman Buni, a senior officer of the Civilian Joint Task Force, a volunteer vigilante group that supports the military in the fight against extremist groups and armed gangs, confirmed that at least 25 construction workers were killed in the Thursday attack. He said the workers had been engaged on a local development project when they were ambushed.
Buni and the police officer also said extremist fighters, backed by armed drones, had raided an army base in a separate attack in the same town hours earlier. The police officer said nine soldiers and two members of the civilian task force were killed in that incident, while about 16 injured security personnel were evacuated for medical treatment following heavy gunfire.
He added that it remained unclear whether the base attack was carried out by Boko Haram or the rival ISWAP, both of which are active in the region and have carried out similar assaults in the past. Sabon Gari lies in a part of Borno State that has frequently been targeted by insurgents seeking to undermine government authority and disrupt economic activity.
Security analysts say attacks on construction projects are often intended to deter development and demonstrate the continued reach of armed groups. In recent years, insurgents have targeted road building, telecommunications infrastructure and energy facilities, arguing that such projects symbolise state presence in areas where they operate.
Nigeria is facing a complex and multi-layered security crisis. Alongside the long-running insurgency in the northeast, there has been a surge in kidnappings for ransom by armed gangs across the northwest and north-central regions in recent months. These groups, often referred to locally as bandits, have targeted travellers, schoolchildren and rural communities.
The authorities have repeatedly pledged to restore security, deploying additional troops and launching military operations against both insurgents and criminal groups. However, residents in affected areas continue to report frequent attacks, limited protection and slow responses from security forces.
Last month, the United States launched airstrikes in northern Nigeria, targeting terrorists, in what officials said was part of broader international cooperation to counter extremist threats in the region. The Nigerian government has welcomed foreign support but maintains that responsibility for tackling insecurity ultimately rests with domestic security agencies.
For many communities in the northeast, the latest attacks reinforce fears that violence remains a persistent reality, despite years of military campaigns aimed at weakening extremist networks.
