Dozens of Nigerian fishermen feared dead after Chad air strikes on Boko Haram

Dozens of Nigerian fishermen are feared dead after Chad's military launched air strikes on Boko Haram militants in the Lake Chad region. Abubakar Gamandi Usman, chairman of Lake Chad Basin Fisheries Association of Nigeria, said several of the union's members were missing and estimated more than 40 had died.

No bodies have yet been recovered, but Usman believes some fishermen were hit by the strikes, while others drowned after attempting to flee in overloaded boats. Authorities in Chad and Nigeria have not commented. On Sunday, Chad's presidency said it had carried out retaliatory "intensive air strikes" on Boko Haram strongholds in response to "unjustified attacks" by Boko Haram, which took place last Monday and Wednesday and targeted Chadian military bases near Lake Chad, reportedly killing at least 24 soldiers and two generals. Usman told the BBC that after Chad's air force began circling overhead on Friday, panic broke out, with both Boko Haram fighters and fishermen attempting to flee.

The search for the missing fishermen has been slow, Usman said, as some parts of Lake Chad are very deep. Chadian military operations have been accused of causing civilian deaths before - in October 2024, the air force was said to have killed dozens of Nigerian fishermen during air strikes targeting Boko Haram fighters on Tilma Island in Lake Chad. Nigeria's military has also been accused of claiming civilian lives during operations against armed groups and jihadist fighters, though authorities often describe such deaths as unintended collateral damage.