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Chad has declared three days of national mourning following renewed attacks by Boko Haram fighters in the Lake Chad Basin that have killed dozens of soldiers, including two senior military officers.
The latest violence comes after an assault on the Barka Tolorom military base on the Chadian side of Lake Chad on Monday evening. According to a military source, at least 24 Chadian soldiers were killed while several others sustained injuries during the attack.
Just two days later, another deadly incident struck the country’s security forces. On Wednesday afternoon, boats carrying security and defence personnel on patrol around the lake’s islands reportedly “fell into a Boko Haram ambush,” an officer from Chad’s General Staff told AFP. The ambush resulted in the deaths of two generals, marking another major blow to Chad’s military operations in the region.
In response, the Chadian government announced a period of national mourning beginning at midnight on Wednesday and ending at midnight on Saturday.
In an official statement, authorities said the mourning period was declared “in memory of the martyrs who fell on the field of honour during the attacks by terrorist groups that occurred on May 4 and 6.”
Flags across the country are being flown at half-mast, while all festive and celebratory activities have been suspended during the mourning period.
President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno had earlier condemned the attacks and vowed that the fight against Boko Haram would continue.
“We will continue the fight with renewed determination until this threat is completely eradicated,” he said following Monday’s assault.
The Lake Chad region, which borders Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger, and Chad, has remained one of the most volatile security zones in Africa. The vast network of islands and marshlands has served as a base for Boko Haram fighters and rival insurgent groups, including the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
Security analysts say recent months have seen increased activity from Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS), one of Boko Haram’s factions, with reports of kidnappings and attacks on military outposts becoming more frequent.
The latest attacks also revive memories of October 2024, when another Boko Haram assault in the Lake Chad Basin killed around 40 Chadian soldiers. That attack prompted President Deby to launch Operation Haskanite, a military campaign aimed at dismantling the group’s operational capacity in Chad.
Although the Chadian army announced in February 2025 that Boko Haram no longer had “any sanctuary on Chadian territory,” the recent killings have shown that armed groups remain capable of carrying out deadly operations across the region.
