According to Deutsche Welle, many of the victims had only recently returned to the town after years of displacement. The attackers not only targeted individuals but also set homes ablaze. A traditional leader of Darul Jama, who requested anonymity, informed Reuters, “They went house to house, killing men and leaving women behind. Almost every household is affected.” By Saturday morning, 70 bodies had been recovered, with more residents reported missing.
Malam Bukar, a resident who fled into the countryside with his family, recounted the horror: “They came shouting, shooting everyone in sight.” He added, “When we returned at dawn, bodies were everywhere,” as told to AFP.
Boko Haram has been waging an insurgency since 2009 to establish an Islamic caliphate in northeast Nigeria, resulting in approximately 40,000 deaths and displacing over two million people. A splinter group, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), formed in 2016, has also been launching attacks in the region. According to a tally by Good Governance Africa, the first half of 2025 saw a resurgence in jihadist activity, with around 300 attacks resulting in 500 civilian deaths.
Nigeria’s military claims to have intensified counterinsurgency operations in recent months to curb these activities, but the latest attack raises questions about the effectiveness of these security measures. It also poses a setback for efforts to close camps for internally displaced people and facilitate their return to villages.
In a separate incident in southern Nigeria’s Edo state, gunmen attacked a convoy, killing eight security officials and kidnapping Chinese workers. The attack targeted the paramilitary Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and Chinese nationals working for BUA Cement. NSCDC spokesperson Afolabi Babawale reported that four kidnapped Chinese workers were rescued, although one remains missing. Eight NSCDC operatives were killed, and four were seriously injured.