World

Chad says 23 soldiers killed by Boko Haram militants

By AAP Newswire

May 6, 2026

Chadian soldiers — Militant Islamist group Boko Haram has killed 23 soldiers in Chad. -EPA

The Chad armed forces says 23 soldiers were killed and 26 hurt in an attack by Islamist militant group Boko Haram on a base on the shores of Lake Chad.

Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content

Army spokesman Issakha Acheikh Chanane said that the attack late on Monday on the island of Barka Tolorom in Lake Chad was repelled by Chadian forces and that "a significant number of militants were neutralised".

Chadian President Mahamat Idriss DÃ©by Itno called the attack "cowardly," in a post on Facebook.

"In the face of barbarism, Chad stands firm, united, and unyielding," the president said.

"Obscurantism will never prevail over the Republic. We will continue the fight with renewed determination until this threat is eradicated."

Boko Haram, which was founded in Nigeria in West Africa, has been carrying out repeated attacks in the neighbouring Central African countries of Chad and Cameroon for years.

The violent jihadist group opposes Western education and influence.

The islands in Lake Chad in the common border area of the three countries are now the militia's main retreat.

The worst attack in Chad occurred in March 2020 on the Bohoma peninsula, where around 100 soldiers were killed.