Gunmen, believed to be from Nigeria, killed at least five Cameroonian soldiers in a deadly assault on Bakinjaw, a border village between the two countries, early on Friday.
The attack, which targeted a military post, involved hundreds of armed herders who crossed over from Nigeria’s Taraba State.
According to Aka Martin Tyoga, a member of parliament for the region, the assault was in retaliation for the previous day’s deaths of several herders at the hands of Cameroonian forces.
Agwa Linus, the traditional leader of Bakinjaw, confirmed that the attackers set fire to his home during the raid, adding, “This is not the first time they have attacked — it’s very unfortunate.”
This assault is the latest in a string of violent clashes tied to territorial disputes between militants and national forces in the area, further exacerbating tensions along the shared border.
It also follows a series of deadly incidents in the region. In 2023, an overnight attack on a security post near the northern Cameroonian town of Mora left several dead, including two customs officers, a police officer, and a civilian. Boko Haram, the Islamist militant group, was blamed for that attack.
The group has been responsible for widespread violence in the Lake Chad Basin since 2009, displacing millions and claiming thousands of lives across Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger.
