At least 38 people were killed this week in suspected extremist attacks across northeast Nigeria, residents and anti-militant militia members told AFP on Friday.
Fighters believed to belong to Islamic State West Africa Province surrounded loggers working in a forest near Mafa town late Tuesday, witnesses and militia sources reported.
Attackers allegedly killed 27 loggers and abducted 18 others, leaving families searching for answers as uncertainty deepened across communities already scarred by violence.
“They slit the throats of 27 loggers and took away 18 others whose fate is still unknown,” militia fighter Babakura Kolo said.
Another militia member, Ibrahim Liman, confirmed the victims came from Mafa, located about 60 kilometres from Borno state capital Maiduguri, long a centre of insurgent activity.
The violence followed a deadly triple suicide bombing last month in Maiduguri that killed 23 people, marking one of the city’s bloodiest attacks in years.
Amnesty International said 20 internally displaced people were killed and 30 abducted while collecting firewood near Mafa, underscoring civilians’ vulnerability beyond urban centres.
Militant groups including ISWAP and rival Boko Haram increasingly target farmers, fishermen and labourers, accusing them of sharing information with Nigerian security forces.
On Monday, suspected ISWAP fighters raided Kautikeri village near Chibok, killing 11 residents and burning homes and barns before retreating into nearby Sambisa forest.
Community leader Manasseh Allen said attackers struck swiftly, leaving smoke rising over destroyed shelters and residents fleeing once again into uncertain safety.
Chibok remains symbolically linked to Nigeria’s insurgency after Boko Haram abducted 276 schoolgirls in 2014, triggering global outrage and the “BringBackOurGirls” campaign.
Some of the abducted girls later escaped or were released, but around 100 remain missing, their absence haunting families and the nation alike.
Authorities have not issued an official statement on the latest attacks, despite rising violence targeting both civilians and military positions in recent months.