Jihadist group, ISIS has claimed responsibility for an attack targeting a Nigerian army patrol in the town of Mallam Fatori in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno State (near the borders with neighboring Chad and Niger), allegedly killing three and wounding five others.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that Boko Haram split into two factions in mid-2016 over ideological differences. One is led by Abu Mus’ab Al-Barnawi and largely focuses on attacking military and government targets, while the other, loyal to late Abubakar Shekau, is notorious for suicide bombings and indiscriminate killings of civilians.
ISIS central gave its formal backing to the Barnawi faction, which is known as Islamic State West Africa Province. It has lately intensified its armed campaign, launching a number of major assaults on military targets in Borno and neighbouring Yobe state amid signs of a takeover by more hardline leaders.
Borno and Yobe states, along with nearby Adamawa state, have borne the brunt of nine years of jihadist violence that has claimed over 27,000 lives and forced more than 1.8 million people to flee their homes.
