Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The night of Sunday, August 9, 2026, was supposed to be like any other for the troops stationed at the Forward Operation Base in Gajiram, the headquarters of Nganzai Local Government Area in Borno State. But at about 1:00 a.m. on Monday, August 10, the silence was shattered by the roar of gunfire as suspected Boko Haram terrorists launched a large-scale assault on the military facility, aiming to overrun the position and deal a devastating blow to Nigeria's counter-insurgency efforts in the North-East. In the hours that followed, soldiers fought desperately to repel the attackers, claiming to have killed many insurgents even as their own vehicles and equipment went up in flames, and they issued urgent pleas for reinforcements, ammunition and medical evacuation.
Military sources told SaharaReporters that the attack unfolded in the early hours of Monday, with the insurgents storming the base in large numbers. Distress voice notes obtained from injured soldiers at the base painted a harrowing picture of the battle. "God Almighty is on our side. We overpowered them that overnight with superior firing from all corners of the base. We killed many of them," one soldier said. But the victory came at a cost. Several soldiers sustained serious injuries, and the troops were left waiting for Army authorities to evacuate them for urgent treatment. "Some of our colleagues were seriously injured. We are waiting for the Army authorities to come and evacuate them for urgent treatment," another voice note revealed.
The terrorists, according to SaharaReporters, set fire to several operational vehicles, ammunition and other military assets during the assault. The destruction of critical equipment has left the troops in a precarious position, and they have since appealed to military authorities for urgent reinforcement, ammunition and logistics support. "We need help from Sector 3 Headquarters in Monguno for more reinforcements. The Headquarters Theatre Command is also close to our base, just 56 kilometres from Maiduguri," a soldier added. "We killed many of the Boko Haram fighters. We just want reinforcements now. We need more ammunition; we need extra vehicles". The soldier also expressed frustration over the absence of expected air support: "We were expecting fighter jets to come as reinforcement but none was seen. We need logistics now".
Despite the intensity of the attack, the troops held their ground. "All the personnel really tried. We did our best. None of us left the base. We have been fighting them since. Only God knows what the aim of the terrorists is. They entered the base but we were more intelligent than them," one soldier said. The soldiers' determination to defend the base, even as they faced overwhelming odds, underscores the relentless pressure that Nigerian troops are under in the fight against Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), which have intensified attacks on military bases in recent weeks. Gajiram itself has been repeatedly targeted; earlier this year, in March, troops successfully repelled a similar attack on the Forward Operating Base there. But this latest assault appears to have been more devastating, with the insurgents reportedly breaching the base's defences.
Efforts to obtain the Nigerian Army's response were unsuccessful, as calls to Colonel Onyechi Appolonia Anele, the Army spokesperson, regarding the attack and the reported request for reinforcements went unanswered. The lack of official communication has left a void that has been filled by the desperate voice notes of the soldiers on the ground, whose pleas for help have laid bare the systemic challenges facing troops in the North-East. SaharaReporters noted that this incident is part of a troubling pattern of complaints by Nigerian soldiers fighting insurgency in the Northeast over poor welfare, inadequate equipment, lack of medical care for injured troops and delays in receiving reinforcements during attacks. Some soldiers have also complained that injured colleagues often die because of delays in evacuation and inadequate medical facilities, while operational vehicles destroyed by insurgents are not promptly replaced. Families of fallen soldiers have similarly raised concerns over unpaid allowances and death benefits, which they said had further affected morale among troops on the frontline.
The attack on Gajiram also comes amid a broader surge in violence across Borno State. In the first week of August 2026 alone, suspected Boko Haram and ISWAP fighters carried out multiple attacks on communities and military installations. On August 4, two police personnel were killed in an attack on a police station in Gajiram. On August 7, troops destroyed a Boko Haram/ISWAP hideout in the Mallam Fatori axis of Abadam Local Government Area. And on August 6, rival terrorist factions clashed in Bama Local Government Area, leaving dozens dead. The relentless nature of these attacks has placed an enormous strain on the military, which has been battling the insurgency for over 17 years. President Bola Tinubu's administration has pledged to end the insurgency, but the soldiers on the frontlines continue to pay the price in blood.
As the injured soldiers at Gajiram await evacuation and the military leadership grapples with how to respond, the question remains: how many more attacks must the troops endure before they receive the support they need? The voice notes from Gajiram are a stark reminder that behind the official statements and press releases, there are men and women in uniform fighting for their lives, often with inadequate resources and little hope of timely reinforcement. The attack on Forward Operation Base Gajiram may have been repelled, but the cost—in lives, equipment, and morale—is yet to be fully counted. For now, the soldiers on the ground can only wait and hope that their pleas for help will not fall on deaf ears.
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