Reports from witnesses and a Nigerian intelligence source confirm that Boko Haram jihadists are abandoning their strongholds in the Lake Chad region following intense air strikes and ground operations led by Chad, with crucial support from Nigeria and Niger.

Since last Friday, Chadian aircraft have been targeting Boko Haram positions situated on remote islands within this extensive marshy area. This vast region, encompassing parts of Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger, and Chad, has been a significant jihadist sanctuary since 2009, providing refuge for both Boko Haram and the Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP).

These aerial bombardments have unfortunately resulted in the deaths of dozens of Nigerian fishermen who were operating on Boko Haram-controlled islands, where they were compelled to pay levies to the extremist group.

Videos reviewed by media outlets depict several severely burned fishermen receiving medical attention at a hospital in Bosso, Niger.

“Boko Haram elements are retreating from the islands in the Shuwa area, located at the border confluence of Nigeria, Niger, and Chad,” stated Suleiman Hassan, a fisherman who reached Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State in northeastern Nigeria, on Monday after evacuating the territory with other fishermen.

He further elaborated, “Under the continuous shelling, Boko Haram combatants are vacating their camps on various islands, transporting their families in small canoes.” He specifically mentioned islands such as Dogon Chukwu, Kangarwa, Gashakar, Yawan Mango, and Kwatar Mota as sites of these evacuations.

Sources indicate that Chadian soldiers have engaged jihadist fighters directly on Kaukeri island, which served as a primary base for the group within the Lake Chad basin.

These coordinated military actions are widely regarded as a direct response to recent deadly assaults by Boko Haram against the Chadian military.

Just last week, Chad declared three days of national mourning after an ambush tragically claimed the lives of two of its generals.

Two days prior to that incident, a brazen attack on a military base situated on the shores of Lake Chad resulted in the deaths of at least 24 Chadian soldiers.

A Nigerian intelligence source, speaking anonymously, confirmed Nigeria and Niger’s active participation in these ongoing operations.

“The aerial strikes are meticulously coordinated by Chad, Nigeria, and Niger, with each nation contributing two fighter jets to the mission,” the source revealed.

According to the same source, the fleeing jihadists and their families now find themselves stranded on the lake’s edges, hesitant to advance into areas controlled by ISWAP, Boko Haram’s rival since their split in 2016.

The jihadist insurgency has tragically claimed thousands of lives and displaced millions of individuals, particularly across northeastern Nigeria.

The escalating violence has also spilled over into neighboring Niger, Chad, and Cameroon, prompting these nations to reactivate their “multinational joint force,” originally established in 1994, to combat the growing threat.