More than 50 insurgents have reportedly been killed in a fierce clash between rival factions of Boko Haram — the Jamā’at Ahl as-Sunna lid-Da‘wa wa’l-Jihād (JAS) — and the Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP) at Toumbun Gini, an island community in Abadam Local Government Area of Borno State.
Security sources told counter-insurgency expert Zagazola Makama that the confrontation occurred around 3:00 p.m. on Sunday following an attempted offensive by ISWAP fighters.
According to the sources, ISWAP mobilised its men in 10 high-powered boats and launched an assault aimed at reclaiming the island, which had recently come under the control of the JAS faction.
However, intelligence reportedly reached JAS leaders ahead of the attack, allowing them to prepare a counter-ambush.
“At exactly 1500 hours, ISWAP boats landed, but what was meant to be a surprise offensive turned into a deadly trap. The first shots were decisive. JAS fighters overpowered them within minutes, and ISWAP was routed,” one source said.
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Over 50 ISWAP fighters were reportedly killed during the ambush, while seven of their boats were seized.
The remaining three vessels escaped with casualties.
Video clips purportedly showing the aftermath of the clash surfaced online on Sunday.
Zagazola described the fighting as the fifth consecutive day of intensified hostilities between the two factions, who have been battling for territorial dominance and control of resources around the Lake Chad islands.
Analysts warn that continued pressure from JAS could force surviving ISWAP elements deeper into mainland communities bordering Kukawa, Monguno and Marte local government areas, posing heightened security risks for civilians and security forces.
Although the rivalry has weakened both groups and reduced their capacity to launch large-scale coordinated attacks, it has also fragmented them into smaller, unpredictable cells that are harder to track.
“What is happening on Lake Chad today is a conflict within a conflict, and Nigerian troops remain in the middle of the battlefield,” Zagazola observed. “This is the best time for the Nigerian military to tighten the corridor and deny both factions space to regroup.”
