By Ifeanyi Nwegbu
(Nigeria)
A deadly clash between rival jihadist factions allegedly left close to two hundred fighters dead in the Lake Chad region of north-eastern Nigeria, according to security sources familiar with field reports.
The confrontation was said to have occurred in Dogon Chiku, a remote village on the shores of Lake Chad, where Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) have long battled for dominance over strategic river routes and illicit revenue streams from fishers, herders and loggers. Security officials claimed that ISWAP fighters suffered the heaviest losses, with more than 150 militants reportedly killed in the confrontation.
Both groups, which have been engaged in a bitter rivalry since ISWAP broke away from Boko Haram in 2016 and pledged allegiance to the Islamic State, continue to wage violent campaigns for influence and territorial control across the Lake Chad basin. Their frequent clashes have made the region one of the most volatile and dangerous in Africa.
Local security assessments suggest that the shrinking of Lake Chad — which has lost more than 90 percent of its surface area since the 1960s — has opened up new land corridors now exploited by armed groups for movement, recruitment and expansion. The change in terrain has allegedly intensified competition between the factions, often resulting in large-scale confrontations.
The broader insurgency, which escalated after the death of Boko Haram founder Mohammed Yusuf in 2009, has reportedly claimed more than 40,000 lives and displaced nearly two million people across north-eastern Nigeria. Military authorities have yet to issue an official statement on the latest clash, but security sources say the situation in the Lake Chad area remains tense, with fears of renewed violence in the coming days.
