| Submit your comments on this article |
| Africa Subsaharan |
| ISWAP loses key Buduma unit following internal clash |
| 2026-09-27 |
| [HumangleMedia] The Islamic State West Africa Province has lost its last organised Buduma fighting unit following the latest internal confrontation in the Lake Chad basin. By Ahmad Salkida The latest clash began on Friday, Sept. 25, when Yaku Buduma led fighters to free kinsmen detained on the orders of ISWAP leader Ba Shuwa. The prisoners were allegedly among fighters suspected of planning to surrender to state authorities or whose loyalty Ba Shuwa questioned. Yaku served as an amirul fi’a, an Arabic title for the commander of a large fighting unit. Four qaids, or field commanders, operated under him. His band of over a thousand was particularly valuable to ISWAP terrorists. They are waterborne combatants with extensive knowledge of Lake Chad’s islands, channels and marshes. They led some of ISWAP’s most difficult operations against Bakura Doro’s Boko Haram faction, using their knowledge of the terrain to move fighters, weapons and supplies across the lake. The rupture also dismantles a relationship cultivated by Abubakar Mainok, also known as Abu Bilal al-Mainuki. Mainok maintained close ties with the Buduma after relocating to the Lake Chad area at the height of the insurgency around 2014. Their support strengthened ISWAP’s reach across terrain that remains difficult for both security forces and outsiders to navigate. Mainok was killed in May during a joint Nigerian and US counter-terrorism operation announced by US President Donald Trump. Ba Shuwa’s subsequent takeover of ISWAP and purge of suspected dissenters have deepened tensions within the group. More at the link Related: Ba Shuwa 08/10/2026 ISWAP Leadership crises deepens as Four Shura Council Members reportedly executed Ba Shuwa 08/03/2026 Internal rift deepens in ISWAP as leader detains four Shura Council members over alleged dDissent Ba Shuwa 06/11/2026 ISWAP Used Theology to Absorb the Shock of Its Deadliest Week |
| Posted by:badanov |