Fresh attacks by jihadist groups linked to Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS), Ansaru splinter factions and the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) have heightened fears over the expansion of terrorist violence into Nigeria’s North-Central zone, with Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State emerging as a major flashpoint.
On January 9, 2026, terrorists operating along the Borgu axis attacked Damala village, a Kambari farming settlement, killing four residents and carting away foodstuffs and livestock before retreating into the Kainji National Park.
According to Zagazola Makama, the attack followed the same pattern as the January 3 massacre in Kasuwan Daji, where villagers were killed and others abducted during a coordinated night raid.
Intelligence findings indicate that Borgu and neighbouring Agwara Local Government Area have increasingly become operational zones for a Saddiku-led Boko Haram faction, working in collaboration with JNIM fighters infiltrating from the Sahel.
The groups are believed to be exploiting the Liptako–Gourma tri-border forest corridor, spanning parts of Mali, Niger Republic and Burkina Faso, before filtering through Benin Republic into the Kainji National Park ecosystem.
Zagagola noted that the vast forest cover of the park, combined with weak surveillance and limited state presence, has turned it into a strategic rear base for terrorist regrouping, logistics and cross-border movement.
On November 21, 2025, gunmen abducted students of St. Mary Catholic School, Papiri, in Borgu LGA. The students were later released in batches on December 8 and December 22, 2025. It remains unclear whether ransom was paid.
Intelligence sources linked the abduction to JAS handlers operating from the Ali Ngulde camp in Nigeria’s North-East.
The incident was followed by the January 3, 2026 Kasuwan Daji attack and an earlier January 5 assault on a Mobile Police (MOPOL) checkpoint at New Kali village, also in Borgu LGA.
The pattern points to a high probability of continued and possibly more daring attacks in Borgu and surrounding communities in the coming weeks.
There are growing concerns that the violence could spread into Kwara State, particularly Kaiama and Baruten LGAs, which border the Kainji National Park.
Counterterrorism experts warn that the groups have had sufficient time to regroup and reposition following recent security operations in parts of Niger State, increasing the likelihood of a renewed operational surge.
“The pattern suggests deliberate expansion rather than isolated criminality,” a security expert said.
“This is ideological jihadist violence fused with banditry and cross-border logistics. The Damala attack reinforces assessments that JAS, Ansaru factions and JNIM elements now maintain established bases within Kainji National Park.”
Analysts said the repeated looting of livestock and food supplies reflects the terrorists’ dependence on local communities for sustenance, while relying on the park’s dense ecosystem for concealment, mobility and survival.
Military strategists described Kainji National Park as both the terrorists’ operational centre of gravity and their key vulnerability.
Security experts have called for sustained, intelligence-driven air operations targeting known hideouts, logistics routes and assembly areas within the park.
According to Zagazola Makama, such an approach could disrupt supply chains, degrade combat capability and create favourable conditions for coordinated ground operations to reclaim the area and prevent further expansion into Kwara and deeper into the North-Central region.