Four members of a local hunting association were tragically killed in an ambush orchestrated by suspected insurgents from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) in the Dikwa Local Government Area of Borno State.
According to a post shared on Wednesday by security analyst Zagazola Makama via his official 𝕏 account, the fatal attack took place on Saturday, April 20, at approximately 1:10 p.m. in the village of Ajiri Gongo.
The deceased, identified as Bukar Hajjabe (50), Bulama Karim (45), Idrisa Gote (40), and Modu Aisami (38), were affiliated with the Lawanti Ward Hunters Group.
They were reportedly engaged in a hunting expedition when they fell victim to the ambush, during which the assailants also seized four pump-action rifles belonging to the group.
The Chairman of the hunters group, Ali Kulloma, reported the incident the following day, Sunday, April 21, at around 5:45 p.m. In response, a joint team of security personnel was dispatched to the area.
The remains of the deceased hunters were recovered and transported to the General Hospital in Dikwa, where they were pronounced dead. Subsequently, the bodies were returned to their families and interred in accordance with Islamic customs.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has urged President Donald Trump’s administration to appoint a Special Envoy for Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin to address religious freedom violations.
In its annual report released in March 2025, USCIRF recommended that the Trump administration “appoint a Special Envoy for Nigeria and the Lake Chad Basin to maximise U.S. diplomatic efforts to address religious freedom violations and atrocity risk in that region.”
The commission also accused the Nigerian government under President Bola Tinubu and various state governments of tolerating or inadequately responding to violent attacks by nonstate actors who justify their violence on religious grounds.
These actors include militant groups like Islamist extremists and Fulani militants, who have targeted religious communities across Nigeria.
USCIRF further called on the U.S. State Department to designate Nigeria, alongside Afghanistan, India, and Vietnam, as Countries of Particular Concern (CPCS).
Additionally, it recommended redesignating 12 countries, including Burma, China, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran, Nicaragua, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan, as CPCs.
The commission also proposed maintaining Algeria and Azerbaijan on the Special Watch List (SWL) and adding 10 more countries to the list, including Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Syria, Turkey, and Uzbekistan.
Furthermore, USCIRF recommended the redesignation of terrorist groups such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP), also known as ISIS-West Africa, as Entities of Particular Concern (EPCs), along with other groups like al-Shabaab, Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), and the Houthis.