At least 15 Chadian soldiers were killed and 32 others wounded in clashes with Boko Haram fighters on Saturday, according to an army spokesperson. The incident also resulted in the deaths of 96 Boko Haram members, with 11 more wounded, while the army seized various arms and equipment.
General Issakh Acheikh, speaking on national television on Sunday, did not disclose the specific location of the operation but assured the public that the military is maintaining control. He added that efforts to pursue remaining Boko Haram elements are ongoing under “Operation Haskanite,” a campaign aimed at driving militants from the Lake Chad region.
The Lake Chad region has endured repeated attacks from insurgent groups, including Boko Haram and the Islamic State in West Africa, which originated in northeast Nigeria in 2009 and has since spread into western Chad.
In a recent incident, approximately 40 Chadian soldiers were killed in an assault on a military base in the Lake region, prompting interim President Mahamat Idriss Deby to warn of a potential withdrawal from a regional security coalition. Chad remains a crucial ally for Western forces, including those from France and the United States, in combating a prolonged jihadist insurgency in West Africa’s Sahel region.
Meanwhile, several West African countries that have experienced recent military coups, such as Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, are increasingly distancing themselves from Western alliances, opting instead for support from Russia. These nations, located at the heart of an expanding jihadist conflict, have shifted their foreign policy priorities as they confront ongoing regional instability.
