Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria – In a bold and brutal pre‑dawn assault that has shaken the Nigerian military, suspected Boko Haram fighters attacked the 162 Battalion base along the Mandara–Buratai Road in Borno State on Friday, killing at least eight soldiers and leaving several others wounded. The attack, which began around 4 a.m. during heavy rainfall, exposed the continuing vulnerability of even fortified military positions more than a decade after the insurgency erupted.
Military sources confirmed that the insurgents struck in large numbers, using the cover of darkness and torrential rain to approach the base undetected. "They attacked us at 4 a.m. today when it was raining," a military source at the base told reporters. "Eight soldiers were killed in action". Another source said the attackers overran parts of the facility and carried out a particularly gruesome assault, beheading the slain soldiers before withdrawing. The Nigerian military had not issued an official statement as of the evening of June 5, and the precise number of injured personnel remained unconfirmed.
The targeted base is located in the Mandara Mountains region, a rugged area that straddles the Nigeria–Cameroon border. The terrain has long served as a sanctuary for militant groups, allowing them to regroup, stockpile weapons, and launch surprise raids with relative impunity. Counter‑insurgency analyst Zagazola Makama noted that the mountains provide natural defensive advantages that make sustained military operations particularly challenging. The attack adds to a string of recent assaults on military formations in the North‑East, coming just days after troops repelled an attempted ISWAP attack in Gajigana, Nganzai LGA of Borno, and arrested two suspected informants in Yobe State.
Reinforcement teams have been dispatched to the area, and a comprehensive assessment of casualties and material damage is underway. However, the military’s reticence to release an official account has fueled anxiety among local communities, who often learn of such incidents through unofficial channels days later. One security source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the attackers exploited poor visibility and bad weather to catch troops off guard, but that a counter‑offensive was eventually organised to repel the insurgents.
The violence in Borno is not an isolated event. The Nigerian military has suffered a series of losses in 2026, including the killing of senior commanders. In April, five military commanders, among them two brigade commanders, were killed within a five‑month period, drawing expressions of condolence from President Bola Tinubu. In March, troops repelled coordinated Boko Haram attacks on several Borno communities, but the army also had to dismiss reports claiming more than 40 soldiers had been killed in those engagements, describing such accounts as exaggerated and unverified.
Beyond the immediate frontlines, the humanitarian toll continues to mount. Just hours after the Mandara–Buratai assault, troops of Operation Hadin Kai rescued five children who had escaped from Boko Haram enclaves in different parts of the state following sustained military pressure on insurgent hideouts. Earlier in the week, the same task force rescued 92 kidnapped civilians and foiled an improvised explosive device ambush along the Buratai–Kamuya road in Biu Local Government Area.
The Nigerian military’s official silence on the June 5 attack leaves room for speculation, but the consistent reports from multiple military sources and independent observers confirm the scale of the loss. For the families of the eight fallen soldiers, the wait for official word is excruciating. For a nation already grappling with economic hardship, political tension, and a spate of mass kidnappings across the country, the attack is a grim reminder that the war against Boko Haram is far from over.
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