A fresh confrontation has reportedly erupted between two rival Boko Haram factions in Borno State, with fighters of the Islamic State West Africa Province, ISWAP, launching an ambush on members of Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad, JAS, leaving several senior commanders feared dead.
The incident was reported by security analyst Zagazola Makama, who disclosed that the attack occurred around Bula Murge in Bama Local Government Area of the state.
According to the report, the ambush took place in the Gargash area near Bula Murge, about 11 kilometres north of Miyanti and 26 kilometres northeast of Bama, where ISWAP fighters reportedly launched a surprise assault on the rival faction.
The report said the ambush inflicted heavy casualties on the rival faction, with several prominent JAS commanders feared to have died during the assault.
Among those reportedly killed were Abu Ubaida, Modu Kori, Alhaji Modu, Mure, Zarkawi, Sheriff and Modu Maye, all identified as senior commanders within the JAS faction operating in the area.
According to the report, intercepted communications suggested that surviving JAS fighters had begun relocating their women and children to Bula Daloye after their camps were overrun.
“The attack forced surviving JAS fighters into disarray, with intercepted communications indicating that the group had begun plans to evacuate its women and families to Bula Daloye following the destruction of their camps,” the report stated.
The report further stated that Bula Murge and Nguro Bafuye, two settlements previously occupied by the faction, were set ablaze during the assault, destroying key shelters and logistics facilities.
Security sources, according to Makama, assessed that the latest confrontation had significantly weakened the JAS faction and created an opportunity for troops to intensify ongoing counter-insurgency operations across the area.
Military authorities have reportedly directed troops operating around Miyanti, Bama, Kumshe and neighbouring communities to sustain offensive operations aimed at preventing either faction from regrouping or re-establishing operational bases.
The report added that security commanders have been urged to maintain pressure on both insurgent factions as part of ongoing efforts to further degrade their operational capability across the southern fringes of the Sambisa Forest.