Second Battle of Maiduguri (2015)

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 late 2014, Boko Haram launched an offensive that captured several cities in Borno State, with the jihadists massacring thousands of civilians. Maiduguri, as the capital of Borno, was the most heavily defended city in the state. On January 10, a Boko Haram suicide bomber killed 19 people in Maiduguri, and a day later three people were killed by a Boko Haram bomber in Yobe State.^[3] On January 25, a Boko Haram assault on the city failed, and hundreds of militants were killed.^[4]

The attack began this time from the south of the city at around 3am on February 1.^[5] Fighting was concentrated in Mulai, about three kilometers from Maiduguri. The attackers failed to reach Maiduguri, and were repelled by Nigerian troops after three hours of fighting.^[5] The jihadists then made a second attempt to attack the city from the east, on the road to Dikwa, but were repelled again. The fighting on the road to Dikwa lasted for twelve hours.^[5][6]

After the battle, Nigerian Army spokesman Chris Olukolade said that the jihadists had suffered "massive losses".^[5] At least 72 jihadists and ten civilians were killed in the clashes, according to Nigerian newspaper This Day.^[7] Xinhua reported that over 500 Boko Haram fighters had been killed, citing a Nigerian security official.^[8]