Reports indicate that Chad’s military conducted an airstrike targeting Tilma Island in Nigeria’s Lake Chad region, allegedly mistaking local fishermen for Boko Haram militants. The strike, which took place on Wednesday in Kukawa district, resulted in numerous casualties among fishermen from Nigerian towns along Lake Chad, such as Baga, Doron-Baga, and Duguri.
The strike came days after Boko Haram’s assault on a Chadian military base near Lake Chad that left around 40 soldiers dead and many others injured. Following the attack, Chad’s President Mahamat Idriss Deby launched Operation Haskanite, a mission aimed at neutralizing Boko Haram’s presence in the region. The operation, under Deby’s direct supervision, has been marked by heightened military action and surveillance around Lake Chad, where Boko Haram and ISWAP fighters are known to hide among local communities.
The complexity of counter-terrorism efforts in the Lake Chad region has prompted calls from Chadian leaders for increased international support, highlighting the difficulty in distinguishing between militants and civilians in areas where jihadist groups often blend with local populations.
