By Jeremy Fregene
The Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, has warned that insurgents fuelling the protracted violence in Nigeria’s North-East are embedded within local communities, urging residents of Borno and Yobe states to expose them and take ownership of the fight against terrorism.
Oluyede spoke in Maiduguri after a high-level security meeting that lasted about four hours and brought together top military commanders, including the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shuaibu, and the Theatre Commander of Operation HADIN KAI, Maj.-Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar.
His remarks signal a shift in counterinsurgency strategy, from a reliance on purely military force to a more community-driven approach, as Nigeria continues to battle threats posed by Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province.
At the core of the CDS’s warning is what he described as a troubling but persistent reality: insurgents are not just operating in remote enclaves but are often drawn from within the same communities they attack.
According to him, intelligence gathered over the years indicates that many perpetrators of attacks originate from local populations, leveraging their knowledge of the terrain, social networks, and community structures to evade detection and sustain operations.
He cited a recent operation in Kukawa, where troops discovered wounded insurgents hiding within the community during clearance exercises, underscoring the difficulty of distinguishing between civilians and collaborators.
This dynamic, he said, continues to complicate military efforts, as insurgents exploit familial and social ties for cover, making intelligence gathering more challenging despite sustained offensives by security forces.
Oluyede stressed that the war against insurgency cannot be won by the military alone, calling on residents to see the fight as a collective responsibility and not solely the burden of government.
The CDS also pointed to the evolving tactics of insurgent groups, noting their increasing use of drones and other technologies in attacks, a development he said the military is actively responding to.
He disclosed that the armed forces are enhancing their operational capabilities with advanced drone systems to improve surveillance, targeting, and coordination on the battlefield, as part of broader efforts to adapt to the changing nature of the conflict.