The army stated in a declaration that the individual known as ‘Bakoura’, whose real name is Ibrahim Mahamoudu and is about 40 years old, was killed in a ‘precise operation’ targeting locations he occupied on Chilwa Island in the Diffa region, southeastern Niger, through three consecutive airstrikes in the early hours of August 15. The statement noted that Bakoura was leading a faction loyal to the former Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau, refusing to join the ‘Islamic State West Africa Province’ affiliated with ISIS. He had relocated his supporters to the islands of Lake Chad within Nigerian territory. Bakoura joined Boko Haram more than 13 years ago, assuming leadership of the faction after Shekau was killed in internal battles among jihadist factions in 2021.
It is worth noting that the conflict began in northeastern Nigeria in 2009 and has resulted in the deaths of about 40,000 people so far, while more than two million people have been forced to flee their homes. Boko Haram’s roots go back to 2002 when it became infamous for widespread kidnappings and killings, before pledging allegiance to ISIS in 2015, which is banned in Russia and several other countries, thereby changing its name to ‘Islamic State West Africa Province’. Subsequently, the group split into two wings, one retaining the name ‘Boko Haram’, while the other formed what is known as the ‘Islamic State West Africa Province’.
