Key Points

• A Nigerian Army colonel was killed when his vehicle struck an IED in Monguno, Borno State, after he drove toward his troops to personally assess a Boko Haram attack.
• Six other soldiers died alongside him; troops had already repelled the initial assault and held the position before the commanding officer was hit.
• Suspected armed herdsmen killed at least 14 people across Benue State communities in Otukpo and Apa local government areas, including a Mobile Police officer.

A Nigerian Army colonel and six soldiers are dead after Boko Haram insurgents struck a military position in Monguno, Borno State, on April 12, with the commanding officer killed by an improvised explosive device he encountered after driving toward his embattled troops.

The Borno attack

Troops of Sector 3, Operation HADIN KAI, came under fire at a forward operating location called Charlie 13 in Monguno late April 12. The soldiers fought back, drove the attackers off and maintained control of the position. Then the commanding officer made a decision that cost him his life.

Rather than wait for a report, the colonel drove to the location himself to assess conditions and check on his men. His vehicle hit an IED. He died at the scene, along with six of his soldiers.

Lt. Col. Sani Uba, media information officer for the Headquarters Joint Task Force North East, confirmed the deaths in a statement, describing the colonel’s move as an act of leadership that defined how he had served.

“His willingness to move towards the troops in the heat of the battle, despite the prevailing danger, stands as a profound testament to his valour, sense of duty and unwavering commitment to the welfare and operational effectiveness of his men,” Uba said.

The military said the attack has been contained and Operation HADIN KAI mourns the loss of what it called an exceptional officer and six brave personnel who “paid the supreme price in service to the nation.”

Armed herdsmen kill 14 in Benue

Hundreds of kilometers to the south, a wave of attacks by suspected armed herdsmen left at least 14 people dead across Otukpo and Apa local government areas in Benue State over a violent weekend, with community members still searching bushes for the missing.

A Mobile Police officer was shot dead Saturday while responding to an incursion into Upu community in Otukpo LGA. A local source said the officer moved to push back armed herdsmen who had invaded the area and was killed in the exchange.

The bloodshed had started the night before. Gunmen struck Ikobi and Adija communities on Friday, killing three people and wounding several others before retreating.

They came back Sunday. Attackers descended on Edikwu-Ankpali and killed at least 10 people, including women. Community members recovered 10 bodies and said search teams were still combing the surrounding bush for those still unaccounted for.

“Our fear is that, given the scale of the attack and the number of persons unaccounted for, more bodies may still be found in the bushes because the attackers came with the intention to massacre our people,” a local eyewitness said.

Adams Ochega, chairman of the Apa Local Government Area council, confirmed the attacks and appealed for calm, saying security forces had been redeployed across the affected communities.

Residents voiced bitter frustration, with one witness saying that officials seemed fixated on the 2027 elections while communities buried their dead. The back-to-back attacks in Borno and Benue underscore the scale of insecurity still gripping Nigeria’s north and Middle Belt, where the human cost continues to mount.