Latest news with #MNJTF
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Nigeria's Boko Haram making gains again in Borno state, governor says
By Ahmed Kingimi MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) - Nigeria's Islamist group Boko Haram has renewed attacks and kidnappings in northeastern Borno state with little push back from security forces, suggesting that authorities in the region were losing ground to insurgents, the state's governor has said. Militants from Boko Haram and its offshoot Islamic State West Africa Province have mainly operated in the northeast of Nigeria, attacking security forces and civilians and killing and displacing tens of thousands of people. In the last few years, Nigeria's military had managed to push back against Boko Haram while internal fights with ISWAP further weakened the group. Borno state governor Babagana Zulum said Boko Haram had recently upped attacks, dislodging some military formations in several districts and killing civilians and security forces. "It is a setback in the fragile state of Borno and the North East region," Zulum said during a meeting with security forces in Borno state capital Maiduguri on Tuesday. Zulum added that "the renewed Boko Haram attacks and kidnappings in many communities, almost on a daily basis without confrontation, signalled that Borno state is losing ground." Nigeria's military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Boko Haram, which is based in Borno state, has adapted its tactics over time, including the use of drones for surveillance and attacks, the military says. Nigeria's task in the northeast has also been made harder by Niger's withdrawal from the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) fighting armed Islamist groups in the Lake Chad region. MNJTF includes soldiers from Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon. Zulum said Nigeria should put more effort in deploying technological warfare to "stem the tide of all renewed attacks bedevilling parts of the Sahelian Borno." Nigeria's military is stretched by insecurity across the country, including criminal armed gangs who kidnap for ransom as well as militants in the northwest, and deadly farmer-herder clashes in the central belt. (Writing by MacDonald Dzirutwe, Editing by Chijioke Ohuocha and Aidan Lewis)
Reuters
09-04-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Nigeria's Boko Haram making gains again in Borno state, governor says
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria, April 9 (Reuters) - Nigeria's Islamist group Boko Haram has renewed attacks and kidnappings in northeastern Borno state with little push back from security forces, suggesting that authorities in the region were losing ground to insurgents, the state's governor has said. Militants from Boko Haram and its offshoot Islamic State West Africa Province have mainly operated in the northeast of Nigeria, attacking security forces and civilians and killing and displacing tens of thousands of people. In the last few years, Nigeria's military had managed to push back against Boko Haram while internal fights with ISWAP further weakened the group. Borno state governor Babagana Zulum said Boko Haram had recently upped attacks, dislodging some military formations in several districts and killing civilians and security forces. "It is a setback in the fragile state of Borno and the North East region," Zulum said during a meeting with security forces in Borno state capital Maiduguri on Tuesday. Zulum added that "the renewed Boko Haram attacks and kidnappings in many communities, almost on a daily basis without confrontation, signalled that Borno state is losing ground." Nigeria's military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Boko Haram, which is based in Borno state, has adapted its tactics over time, including the use of drones for surveillance and attacks, the military says. Nigeria's task in the northeast has also been made harder by Niger's withdrawal from the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) fighting armed Islamist groups in the Lake Chad region. MNJTF includes soldiers from Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon. Zulum said Nigeria should put more effort in deploying technological warfare to "stem the tide of all renewed attacks bedevilling parts of the Sahelian Borno." Nigeria's military is stretched by insecurity across the country, including criminal armed gangs who kidnap for ransom as well as militants in the northwest, and deadly farmer-herder clashes in the central belt.
The Guardian
01-04-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Niger's junta withdraws from Lake Chad anti-Islamist force
Niger's ruling junta has quit a regional force fighting armed Islamist groups in west Africa's Lake Chad area, cementing an acrimonious split from former allies in the region. The decision to exit the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) was announced in a bulletin on state television over the weekend. The move 'reflects a stated intent to reinforce security for oil sites', the bulletin stated, without providing further details. The MNJTF was formed in 2015 by Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Nigeria in the wake of increasing jihadist attacks across their territories. At its peak, it had an estimated 10,000 troops and fought many armed groups, especially Boko Haram and its offshoots. But any serious progress has been hampered or even undone by poor collaboration and equipping, analysts say. 'The force was never that effective, said Ulf Laessing, the Bamako-based director of the Sahel programme at Konrad Adenauer Foundation, a German thinktank. Its decline, he added, was 'good news for jihadists and it is bad news for villagers on the lake side, fishers or farmers who just want to go about their business but who will now get less military support'. Niger's exit from MNJTF came days after the junta's leader, Abdourahmane Tiani, was sworn in as president until 2030 under a new charter that suspended the constitution and dissolved all political parties. Niger has also isolated itself from the Economic Community of West African State (Ecowas), after Ecowas imposed a range of sanctions following the coup that ousted the democratically elected president, Mohamed Bazoum, in July 2023. Within two months of the coup, it had joined the splinter Alliance of Sahel States (AES) along with Burkina Faso and Mali, where there have also been military takeovers since 2020. Since then, AES has introduced new biometric passports to replace the old regional passports and on Monday, it announced a 0.5% levy on imported goods from Ecowas states. Ikemesit Effiong, managing partner at Nigerian geopolitical risk advisory SBM Intelligence, said the levy put an end to 'a long history of free trade across the western Sahel' and could change the dynamics of Ecowas's negotiations with AES. 'When squared with Ecowas's statement commitment to keep open trade and borders with AES states, I think this [levy] will force Ecowas to drop its kids' gloves strategy and be more forceful with the AES,' Effiong said. It remains unclear what impact Niger's withdrawal from the MNJTF will have on a security agreement signed with neighbouring Nigeria last August. Both countries share centuries of history and a border that spans 1,000 miles but Nigeria-led Ecowas's push for a rapid return to democratic governance has caused friction between both countries. Effiong said recent moves in the capital, Niamey, which has been seeking new military and economic partners since expelling French troops in 2023, are unsurprising. 'Niger has been pulling out of all its main regional bilateral and multilateral commitments, much of which it sees as western influenced or inspired,' said Effiong, who noted that MTNJTF had received military and intelligence aid from western partners in the past.
Yahoo
30-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Niger withdraws from Lake Chad military force
NIAMEY (Reuters) - Niger has quit an international force fighting armed Islamist groups in West Africa's Lake Chad region as it seeks to shore up security around oil assets at home, the government said in a bulletin on state television. The Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), which also includes soldiers from Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon, has been working to stem the insurgency since 2015, but progress has been hobbled by division and poor coordination, allowing armed groups to flourish across the region's sparsely populated scrublands. MNJTF has yet to comment on Niger's withdrawal, and it is unclear how the step will affect the mission's future. The Lake Chad region has been repeatedly attacked by militant groups, including Islamic State in West Africa and Boko Haram, whose insurgency erupted in northeast Nigeria in 2009 and has killed tens of thousands of people. Last year, Chad threatened to pull out of the MNJTF after about 40 soldiers were killed in an attack on a military base. And Niger has become increasingly withdrawn since a military junta overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum in 2023. Along with Burkina Faso and Mali - neighbouring states where juntas also snatched power in recent years - it withdrew from regional bloc the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in 2024. Niger's junta, which last week announced a five-year transition to constitutional rule, has promised to restore security in the country, whose vast desert north is crossed by migrants and traffickers. But the army has little control over large parts of the country. Islamist militants killed at least 44 civilians and severely injured 13 others during an attack on a mosque in the southwest this month. Its energy infrastructure, including an oil pipeline that links the Agadem oilfield to Benin's coast, has come under attack.
Reuters
30-03-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Niger withdraws from Lake Chad military force
NIAMEY, March 30 (Reuters) - Niger has quit an international force fighting armed Islamist groups in West Africa's Lake Chad region as it seeks to shore up security around oil assets at home, the government said in a bulletin on state television. The Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), which also includes soldiers from Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon, has been working to stem the insurgency since 2015, but progress has been hobbled by division and poor coordination, allowing armed groups to flourish across the region's sparsely populated scrublands. The Reuters Tariff Watch newsletter is your daily guide to the latest global trade and tariff news. Sign up here. MNJTF has yet to comment on Niger's withdrawal, and it is unclear how the step will affect the mission's future. The Lake Chad region has been repeatedly attacked by militant groups, including Islamic State in West Africa and Boko Haram, whose insurgency erupted in northeast Nigeria in 2009 and has killed tens of thousands of people. Last year, Chad threatened to pull out of the MNJTF after about 40 soldiers were killed in an attack on a military base. And Niger has become increasingly withdrawn since a military junta overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum in 2023. Along with Burkina Faso and Mali - neighbouring states where juntas also snatched power in recent years - it withdrew from regional bloc the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in 2024. Niger's junta, which last week announced a five-year transition to constitutional rule, has promised to restore security in the country, whose vast desert north is crossed by migrants and traffickers. But the army has little control over large parts of the country. Islamist militants killed at least 44 civilians and severely injured 13 others during an attack on a mosque in the southwest this month. Its energy infrastructure, including an oil pipeline that links the Agadem oilfield to Benin's coast, has come under attack.
