Boko Haram Attacks Military Base in Chad, 23 Soldiers Killed
Al Jazeera Staff
At least 23 Chadian soldiers were killed and 26 others wounded in an attack by Boko Haram on a military post in the Lake Chad region. President Deby condemned the attack as cowardly and vowed to continue fighting until the threat is fully eliminated. The assault adds to a recent surge in attacks by the group, which has long destabilized the area.
Chad's army said on May 27 that at least 23 of its soldiers were killed and 26 others wounded in an attack by the Boko Haram armed group targeting a military post in the Lake Chad region.
According to a statement from Chad's military, the attack occurred on the night of May 26 on Barka Tolorom Island, which lies within Chadian territory. The Boko Haram group, which is based in Nigeria, has long been a persistent threat around the Lake Chad area, where the borders of Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria converge.
Chad's army reported that it killed a significant number of the attacking fighters and repelled the assault. President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno of Chad described the attack as a cowardly act in a Facebook post on May 27 and declared: We will continue to fight with even greater determination until this threat is completely eliminated.
In recent months, Chadian soldiers have faced an increasing number of Boko Haram attacks. In October 2024, a similar assault killed around 40 Chadian troops. In recent months, there has also been a rise in attacks by the JAS faction of Boko Haram, including kidnappings and assaults on forward military positions, especially on islands and along the lakeshore in Niger.
Following the October 2024 attack, President Deby launched a counteroffensive campaign that he personally commanded in the field for two weeks. After the operation ended in February 2025, Chad's army asserted that Boko Haram no longer had any hiding places on Chadian soil.
The islands and marshes of Lake Chad also serve as hideouts for ISWAP, a rival splinter group linked to the Islamic State (IS) that broke away from Boko Haram. Chad, a landlocked country in Central Africa, has endured years of instability marked by insurgencies, armed conflicts, and successive coups. Despite having oil resources, a stagnant economy and harsh climate conditions keep Chad among the poorest nations in Africa.
