Al-Qaeda terrorists claim attack near Nigerian border with Benin

Jama’at Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM), an affiliate of al-Qaeda global terror group, has claimed an attack in Basso, a town in Benin Republic which is about 15 kilometers from Babana and other communities around Kainji National Park straddling Kwara and Niger states.

The terror group disclosed this on 12 June in its propaganda snippet seen by PREMIUM TIMES.

It did not provide details of the attack but said in Arabic that it had taken “control” of a Beninese military post in Basso, Borgou.

In April, the group attacked an Armoured Personnel Carrier belonging to the francophone country’s military, near the same border.

Also in April, PREMIUM TIMES reported that JNIM killed 70 soldiers in attacks on two military posts in northern Benin.

Experts have warned that the spillover of violence in the Sahel, where JNIM holds sway over territories in Benin, Mali and Burkina Faso, could further destabilise Nigeria and frustrate its fight against insurgency.

Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, shared a similar view when he spoke at the All Progressives Congress (APC) summit, where he highlighted the security milestone of the President Tinubu administration in two years.

Mr Ribadu stated that the instability in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, is spilling into Nigeria, heightening the already existing tension.

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Boko Haram (formally known as Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS)), which began its violent campaign in 2010, has already disrupted peace and stability in Nigeria with various attacks, including the 2014 Chibok girls abduction. The group’s actions have caused over 100,000 deaths and displaced millions of people.

The insurgency took another dimension in the country in 2016 when Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) broke away from Boko Haram, declaring the military as its main target, while continuously clashing with its former ally.

While Nigeria grapples with the Boko Haram insurgency, it is also faced with the emergence of seemingly new terror groups – Lakurawa and Mahmuda – operating the playbook of global and local jihadi terror groups.

In response to this cross-border terrorism, regional governments have drafted plans, such as the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF), to combat the threat. However, such initiatives are being threatened by the schism that rocked the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), causing a standoff between Junta-led and democratic states in the region.

JNIM in Nigeria?

There is no evidence that JNIM operates in Nigeria, even though some experts believe that they may be taking cover in Kainji National Park, where the Mahmuda terrorists operate. There are also reports of trade and operational collaboration between the two groups.

In 2022, some jihadists believed to be members of JNIM crossed into Kainji National Park in what is believed to be an attempt to link up with their brothers-in-arms [Ansaru] around Birnin Gwari in Kaduna State.

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It was based on this that some experts believe that JNIM operates in Nigeria, with some warning that the group’s attack on Nigeria “is only a matter of time.”

The JNIM was formed in March 2017 when four Mali-based extremist groups – Ansar al-Din, al-Murabitun, the Macina Liberation Front (MLF) and the Sahara Emirate subgroup of al-Qa’ida in the Lands of the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) – merged forces.