ISWAP Fighters Att∆ck Yobe Town, B√rn D0wn Gaidam Market As Troops Battle Terrorists

ISWAP Fighters Attack Yobe Town, Burn Down Gaidam Market As Troops Battle Terrorists

A video circulating on Facebook late Monday showed what appeared to be chaotic scenes in the town, with heavy gunshots heard in the background.

Residents of Gaidam town in Yobe State have been thrown into panic after suspected fighters of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) stormed the area on Monday, sparking a fierce gunbattle with Nigerian troops.

Security analyst and counter-insurgency expert, Zagazola Makama, disclosed that troops are currently engaging the insurgents in an intense exchange of gunfire following the attack on the town.

“Gaidam under attack as troops engage ISWAP in fierce gunbattle. Troops are engaging fighters of ISWAP following an attack on Gaidam town in Yobe,” he said.

A video circulating on Facebook late Monday showed what appeared to be chaotic scenes in the town, with heavy gunshots heard in the background.

The video, posted by a user identified as Hausawa, claimed that ISWAP fighters had infiltrated Gaidam and set ablaze the town’s modern market.

“ISWAP are currently in Gaidem, Yobe State. According to some sources, they have burned down Gaidam Modern Market,” the caption read.

SaharaReporters gathered that residents fled their homes as sporadic gunfire echoed across parts of the town, while security forces reportedly mobilised to repel the attackers.

As of the time of filing this report, the Nigerian military authorities had yet to issue an official statement confirming casualties or the extent of damage caused by the insurgents.

Gaidam, located in northern Yobe, has repeatedly come under attack by insurgent groups operating in the Lake Chad region, with ISWAP intensifying assaults on both military formations and civilian communities in recent months.

The latest attack underscores the persistent security challenges facing communities in North-East Nigeria, despite repeated claims by authorities that insurgents have been largely degraded.

Residents remain on edge as the sound of gunfire continues to reverberate through the town.

In November 2025, the Nigerian Army said its troops of the 25 Task Force Brigade escaped a deadly ambush on Friday after terrorists launched a surprise attack on their patrol team near Wajiroko, in the Azir–Multe axis of Damboa Local Government Area, Borno State.

The army said the patrol squad, led by the Commander of 25 Brigade, Brigadier General M. Uba, was returning from a successful clearance mission around the fringes of Sambisa Forest when insurgents opened heavy fire on them, triggering a fierce gun battle in one of the most volatile theatres of the Boko Haram conflict.

In a statement issued on Saturday by the Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Lieutenant Colonel Appolonia Anele, the Nigerian Army said the troops — working alongside members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) — immediately responded with superior firepower, breaking through the ambush and forcing the attackers to flee in disarray.

Despite the successful breakout, the Army confirmed that two soldiers and two CJTF members were killed in the confrontation, describing them as brave and heroic personnel who paid the supreme price while on active service to the nation.