Battle of Baga (2015)
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Boko Haram victory
changes Boko Haram captures Baga and surrounding villages, effectively controlling all of northern Borno State
| Battle of Baga (2015) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Boko Haram insurgency | |||||||||
 US Army battle plan of Baga | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Boko Haram | |||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
| Enitan Ransome-Kuti | Abubakar Shekau | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
|
14 killed 30 injured (per Nigeria) | Unknown | ||||||||
On January 3, 2015, militants from Boko Haram attacked a Nigerian military base at Baga, Borno State, Nigeria, seizing the base, town, and surrounding villages. Following Boko Haram's seizure of Baga, hundreds of civilians were massacred by the group.
Boko Haram emerged in 2009 as a jihadist social and political movement in a failed rebellion in northeast Nigeria.[1] Throughout the following years, Abubakar Shekau unified militant Islamist groups in the region and continued to foment the rebellion against the Nigerian government, conducting terrorist attacks and bombings in cities and communities across the region.[2]
In August 2014, Boko Haram launched a campaign to capture several cities in Borno State, capturing Damboa in late July and Gwoza and other cities in August. In each city, the group carried out large-scale massacres against civilians and suspected pro-government people.[2] The campaign continued in Gamboru Ngala, with Boko Haram capturing the city on August 25 and immediately launching attacks on the Cameroonian city of Fotokol.[2][3] On September 1, the group captured Bama.[4] In November 2014, Boko Haram fighters captured Malam Fatori in northern Borno State after a lull in their offensive.[5] In December, Damaturu was captured and 115 civilians were killed.
Baga had been the site of fighting between the Nigerian army and Boko Haram since 2013. Between April 19 and 22, 2013, much of Baga was devastated during a battle between the two sides. While the Nigerian military claimed only 37 civilians were killed, a Nigerien senator put the toll at 228.[6] On August 10, 2014, Boko Haram raided the village of Dogon Fill near Baga, kidnapping the men aged 15–30 and burning down the village. Around 28 men were killed.[7] Chadian soldiers intercepted the bus carrying the victims and freed 85 men.[7] On November 14, 2014, 48 fishmongers in Dogon Fill were killed by Boko Haram and their bodies dumped into Lake Chad.[8] After this massacre, the Chadian and Nigerien contingents withdrew their forces from Baga, deeming the area too dangerous.[9]
By January 2015, Baga had a population of 10,000 inhabitants, including the village of Doron Baga.[10] It was the last town in northern Borno State under government control and completely surrounded by jihadists. In 2014, it was made the headquarters of the Multinational Joint Task Force.[11]