Battle of Lake Chad
Battle between islamic terrorist groups
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The Battle of Lake Chad was waged between 5 and 8 November 2025 on Lake Chad in Nigeria's Borno State between rival jihadist groups of Boko Haram and the Islamic State – West Africa Province (ISWAP).[3] The clashes have been described as a "turf war".[4][5]
changes Boko Haram overruns several ISWAP‑held settlements
| Battle of Lake Chad | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Boko Haram insurgency and the Camp Holocaust campaign | |||||||||
| |||||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||||
 Boko Haram |
Islamic State | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
|
Hassan Buduma[3] Mohd Hassan[3] |
Unknown | ||||||||
| Units involved | |||||||||
|
Boko Haram | |||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
|
Dozens of armed boats |
10 armed boats | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
|
4 killed |
170–200 killed | ||||||||
Background
Since ISWAP's formal split as a splinter group from Boko Haram in 2016,[6][7]: 5 the two groups have been in a territorial intra-jihadist conflict over influence in the Lake Chad region.[8][9] In years prior to the battle, the conflict in the Chad Basin was worsening,[10] with ISWAP holding control of the islands within the lake since 2021 as part of its Camp Holocaust campaign.[2][11] Their hold over these territories occurred around May 2021, when ISWAP attacked the Sambisa Forest, a stronghold of Boko Haram.[6]
In mid-2025, numerous military bases and outposts belonging to Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria's Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) located within the Chad Basin were described as "soft targets for attacks" by ISWAP. The understaffed and remote positions were vulnerable to the group's shifting tactics towards nighttime raids with light firearms and drone bombings. Attacks by ISWAP were on the rise.[11] By September 2025, ISWAP's victories were being challenged by Boko Haram, whose resurgence was attributed to the MNJTF's focus on ISWAP and failures of disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) programs. Boko Haram's tactics in attacking military positions echoed those of ISWAP.[12]
Battle
Between 5 and 8 November 2025, Boko Haram fighters launched a naval invasion against ISWAP bases across the various islands in Lake Chad. The attacks were led by Hassan Buduma and Mohd Hassan and used dozens of fighters armed with heavy weapons on motorised boats.[2] Military forces reported that "most of the deceased are believed to be ISWAP members,"[6] with the clashes leaving at least 4 Boko Haram attackers dead and between 170 and 200 ISWAP members killed.[9][13]
Boko Haram successfully seized several ISWAP bases and their weaponry,[14] surviving militants retreated to their mainland positions in the villages of Ali Jillimari, Metele, Kangarwa, and Gudumbali in northern Borno State, Nigeria.[9] Only three of ISWAP’s boats managed to escape, seven others were captured alongside their arms and ammunition.[13]
Aftermath
In the aftermath of the battle, the Nigerian Air Force launched a series of airstrikes on ISWAP positions on 9 November, targeting the Lake Chad Basin, as well as several other states in northern Nigeria.[15]