Military claims major airstrike victories amid rising civilian deaths, worsening insecurity, and renewed calls for decisive government action
Nigeria’s security forces are ramping up operations in the country’s troubled north-east after the military announced it had killed at least 35 jihadists in a series of targeted air strikes near the border with Cameroon.
According to a military statement, the strikes were launched across four separate locations to thwart an imminent assault on ground troops by insurgents linked to Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). The Nigerian Air Force added that it would sustain aerial cover for troops dismantling militant strongholds across the region.
This latest offensive comes against the backdrop of alarming security concerns. The United Nations estimates that more than 35,000 people have been killed and at least two million displaced since the insurgency erupted over a decade ago. Despite repeated offensives, the jihadists remain resilient, with the Institute for Security Studies noting at least 15 attacks so far this year, including assaults using modified commercial drones to strike military bases and disrupt reinforcements.
The military insists it is making gains, citing reports of nearly 600 militants killed in eight months, although these figures cannot be independently verified. Still, the persistent violence underscores the deepening crisis, which is far from confined to the northeast. Nigeria continues to grapple with widespread kidnappings, violent criminal gangs, and escalating communal clashes that have left citizens across the country feeling besieged.
Prominent Nigerians, including former government ministers, business leaders, and civil society activists, warned in a statement that parts of the country are experiencing “wartime levels of slaughter,” even though Nigeria is officially at peace. They cited a May 2025 Amnesty International report, which estimated that over 10,200 people have been killed since President Bola Tinubu assumed office two years ago.
The group called for the urgent creation of a Presidential Task Force with sweeping powers to unify and coordinate the response to the myriad conflicts. Without such measures, they argued, insecurity could spiral further out of control.
International partners have also taken notice. Earlier this month, the United States approved the sale of $346 million worth of weapons to Nigeria to bolster its counter-insurgency operations.
Yet despite new weaponry, intensified airstrikes, and repeated assurances from the military, many Nigerians remain skeptical that the country’s security forces can decisively end the insurgency. As communities continue to suffer abductions, displacement, and mass killings, pressure is mounting on the government to act swiftly and decisively to restore peace.
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