This Week's Islamic Massacres > Nigerian military kill >100 and injure as many more; ISWAP attacks military bases in NE Nigeria; Sunnis murder 12 Shias in Afghanistan

 

Military air strikes kill dozens of people in northeast Nigeria, Amnesty International says

Africa

Military air strikes on a village in northeastern Nigeria killed dozens of people on Saturday, Amnesty International reported Sunday. The country's air force initially said it had struck a "known terrorist enclave and logistics hub" before later saying it was launching an investigation into the attack following reports of civilian casualties.

Dozens of people died in air strikes in Nigeria's northeastern Yobe state as military aircraft hunted jihadists, local residents and Amnesty International said Sunday.

Africa's most populous country has been fighting a jihadist insurgency for 17 years, since Boko Haram's 2009 uprising, which has seen the emergence of powerful splinter groups including Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).

In recent years, civilians have been caught in the crossfire and killed in military air strikes targeting the militants, though the authorities sometimes dispute hitting civilians.

The latest air strikes on the village of Jilli occurred on Saturday, the death tolls differing according to the sources.

Amnesty International said on X there were "more than 100 dead" and 35 people seriously wounded.

“We have their pictures and they include children,” Isa Sanusi, Amnesty International's Nigeria director, told the Associated Press, referring to the casualties.

“We are in touch with people that are there, we spoke with the hospital,” he said. “We spoke with the person in charge of casualties, and we spoke with the victims.”

Local chief Lawan Zanna Nur however said "the total casualties, dead and injured, is around 200".

Many were taken to hospitals in nearby Geidam and Maiduguri, he added, where at least eight more of the wounded had died Sunday.

"We are talking of dozens dead but it is difficult to give a specific toll," he said.

Nigeria's military said in a statement it had struck a location in Jilli, "long identified as a major terrorist movement corridor and convergence point for Islamic State West Africa Province terrorists and their collaborators".

Calling it "a carefully, well coordinated planned and intelligence-driven operation", the military said in a statement that it "successfully conducted a precision air strike on a known terrorist enclave and logistics hub located near the abandoned village of Jilli".

It said "scores of terrorists" were killed in the strike, but did not mention any civilian casualties.

The Nigerian Air Force later responded to reports of civilian casualties with a statement saying it had activated ‌its Civilian Harm Accident and Investigation Cell "to immediately proceed to the location on a fact-finding ⁠mission on the allegation".

A market committee member Bulama Mulima Abbas told AFP "36 bodies have been counted" after the airstrike "on the traders".

Watch moreAcross Africa: 'Mothers of Chibok', a story of sadness and strength

An intelligence source told AFP that Jilli market "is wholly controlled by Boko Haram who provides security and collect tax from traders".

Jihadist violence had slowed from its peak in around 2015 but Boko Haram and ISWAP have recently stepped up attacks in northeastern Nigeria in their campaign to establish a caliphate.

The insurgency which started in 2009 has killed more than 40,000 people and displaced around two million more, according to the United Nations.

Early this year the United States began deploying 200 troops to Nigeria to provide technical and training support to soldiers in fighting jihadist groups.

Nigeria's Attorney General and Minister of justice, Lateef Fagbemi on Friday said nearly 400 people had been convicted for terrorism and terrorism financing in the latest series of mass trials.

"In total, we brought about 508 cases. Of this 508, we were able to secure 386 convictions, 8 discharges, 2 acquittals and 112 adjourned to the next phase," he told reporters.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)

Nigeria: Islamic jihadis strike army base, murder army general and several other soldiers

Apr 12, 2026 8:00 am By Robert Spencer16 Comments

Once again, we see Islamic jihadis prevailing over government forces. All over Africa, they appear to be better funded and better equipped than the national armies that oppose them. Who is funding and equipping them? No one seems particularly concerned about that. Or are the national governments in question actually on the jihadis’ side? No one seems particularly concerned about that possibility, either.

BREAKING: Boko Haram Strikes Military Base In Borno, Kills Army General, Several Other Soldiers

by Dayo Dickson, Parallel Facts, April 9, 2026:

Terrorists from the Islamic State-backed faction of Boko Haram (ISWAP) have reportedly killed a yet-to-be-confirmed number of soldiers in a deadly attack on a military base in Borno State.

Military sources said the assault took place on Wednesday night at the Joint Task Force facility in Benesheikh, Kaga Local Government Area.

The attackers reportedly used heavy gunfire and explosives, resulting in numerous casualties, including Brigadier-General O.O. Braimah.

“He was killed last night along with the Imam of the Brigade, many officers, and soldiers. The attack lasted several hours. The camp is Beneshek along Damaturu Road; it’s very unfortunate,” a source said….

In March, insurgents attacked bases in Baga, Buratai, and Ajilari, near Maiduguri, reportedly aiming to destabilize forward operating positions and weaken troop morale.

When there is no one else to massacre, Muslims will often resort to killing each other.

Afghanistan: Sunni Muslims murder twelve people at Shi’ite shrine

Apr 13, 2026 9:00 am By Robert Spencer16 Comments

Everywhere the imperative prevails: “strike terror in the enemies of Allah and your enemies” (Qur’an 8:60). With mass migration, these ancient hatreds have begun appearing in Europe and North America, and we will see more of them.

Khwaja Abdullah Ansari Mausoleum in 2021 by Milad Hamadi, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0

Afghanistan: Sources say 12 people killed in Herat shooting

by Siyar Sirat, Amu, April 11, 2026 (thanks to The Religion of Peace):

Sources say 12 people were killed and 20 others wounded in a shooting in western Afghanistan’s Herat province on Friday, April 10, in an attack that appeared to target civilians visiting a religious site.

The assault took place in the Deh Miri area of Injil district in Herat, where a shrine draws visitors, many of them from the Shiite community.

Sources at Herat’s Regional Hospital, a main public health center in the province, said 12 bodies and 20 injured people had been brought in following the attack….

Witnesses described a coordinated assault carried out by four armed men on motorcycles who intercepted a group of civilians around 2 p.m. The attackers, their faces covered, reportedly robbed the victims of money, phones and jewelry before separating men and women and opening fire….

Survivors said many of those at the site had gathered for a religious visit, suggesting the victims may have been targeted based on sectarian identity….

Abdul Mateen Qanay, spokesman for Taliban Interior ministry, said on Friday that the shooting occurred when assailants on motorcycles opened fire on civilians gathered in the area, adding that an investigation was underway.

No group has claimed responsibility….

Saudi Arabia Gives Yemeni Gov't $10bn to Rebuild – President

FILE PHOTO © Naif Rahma / Reuters

Yemen has received $10 billion from Saudi Arabia to rebuild the war-torn country, the Riyadh-backed Yemeni president said.

“Saudi Arabia has provided Yemen with $10 billion,” Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi said, as cited by Al Arabiya, during a meeting of his Aden-based government on Wednesday.

A total of $8 billion from the sum will be spent on the reconstruction of government-held areas, with another $2 billion to be used to support Yemen’s National Bank, he explained.

According to the president, restoring normal functioning of electricity and the water supply, health, education and communications are among the “urgent priorities” for his government.

Yemen is going through a massive humanitarian crisis as a result of the conflict between the Sunni Muslim government of Hadi and the Shia Houthi rebels united with forces loyal to ex-president, Ali Abdullah Saleh.

This is widely seen as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran as the latter backs the Houthis in an attempt to spread its influence throughout the region. 

The wisdom of spending billions rebuilding while the war is still in progress escapes me, but if it alleviates some of the incredible suffering of the people, then God bless it. If it's just an exercise in easing Saudi consciences or trying to look good to the world, that would be unfortunate.

There has so far been no official confirmation of $10 financial aid to Yemen by Saudi officials.

Saudi Arabia's numerous war crimes with USA & UK complicit

Saudi Arabia has contributed to the current state of affairs in Yemen as it has headed an international coalition against the Houthis since March 2015.

The coalition has imposed a blockade of the country and launched an air campaign to return Hadi to power.

Riyadh and its allies have been accused of war crimes by humanitarian groups after their airstrikes hit residential areas and public gatherings on numerous occasions.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported in October that the Saudi coalition, “with direct military support from the US and assistance from the UK,” conducted at least 58 “unlawful airstrikes.”

Earlier this week, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, Jamie McGoldrick, said that around 10,000 have been killed in the country since Saudi Arabia intervened, with 7 million people close to starvation.

According to World Health Organization figures, more than 7,400 people have been killed, with around 1,400 of them being children.

In August, the UN said that it holds the action of the Saudi-led coalition as the reason for the majority of deaths among civilians and devastation.

Despite some military gains made by the government in recent months, the conflict in Yemen is far from being over as the Houthis remain in control of capital Sanaa, most of the central and northern highlands and the coast around Hodeida.

Hadi’s presidency is contested by the 10-member presidential council headed by Saleh Ali al-Sammad, which was established by the Houthis last year.

Saudi Grand Mufti: Iranian Leaders not Muslim

By REUTERS

Saudi Grand Mufti Al-Sheikh's remarks, made to a Mecca newspaper which carried them on Tuesday, drew a swift retort from Iran's Foreign Minister.


Pilgrims at Haj ceremony in Mecca. (photo credit:REUTERS)

 DUBAI - Saudi Arabia's top religious authority said Iran's leaders were not Muslims, drawing a rebuke from Tehran in an unusually harsh exchange between the regional rivals over the running of the annual haj pilgrimage.

The war of words on the eve of the mass pilgrimage will deepen a long-running rift between the Sunni kingdom and the Shi'ite revolutionary power. They back opposing sides in Syria's civil war and a list of other conflicts across the Middle East.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a message published on Monday, criticized Saudi Arabia over how it runs the haj after a crush last year killed hundreds of pilgrims. He said Saudi authorities had "murdered" some of them, describing Saudi rulers as godless and irreligious.

Responding to a question by Saudi newspaper Makkah, Saudi Arabia's Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz Al al-Sheikh said he was not surprised at Khamenei's comments.

"We have to understand that they are not Muslims ... Their main enemies are the followers of Sunnah (Sunnis)," Al al-Sheikh was quoted as saying, remarks republished by the Arab News.

He described Iranian leaders as sons of "magus", a reference to Zoroastrianism, the dominant belief in Persia until the Muslim Arab invasion of the region that is now Iran 13 centuries ago.

"BIGOTRY"

Al al-Sheikh's remarks drew an acerbic retort from Iran's Foreign Minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, who said they were evidence of bigotry among Saudi leaders.

"Indeed; no resemblance between Islam of Iranians & most Muslims & bigoted extremism that Wahhabi top cleric & Saudi terror masters preach," Zarif wrote on his Twitter account.

Saudi authorities normally seek to avoid public discussion of whether Shi'ites are Muslims, but implicitly recognize them as such by welcoming them to the haj, and by accepting Iranian visits to the Saudi-based Organization of Islamic Cooperation.

Tensions between the two countries have been rising since Riyadh cut ties with Tehran in January following the storming of its embassy in Tehran, itself a response to the Saudi execution of dissident Shi'ite cleric Nimr al-Nimr.

Custodian of Islam's most revered places in Mecca and Medina, Saudi Arabia stakes its reputation on organizing haj, one of the five pillars of Islam which every able-bodied Muslim who can afford to is obliged to undertake at least once.

Riyadh said 769 pilgrims were killed in the 2015 disaster, the highest haj death toll since a crush in 1990. Counts of fatalities by countries who repatriated bodies showed that more than 2,000 people may have died, more than 400 of them Iranians.

Iran blamed the 2015 disaster on organizers' incompetence. Pilgrims from Iran will be unable to attend haj, which officially starts on Sept. 11, this year after talks between the two countries on arrangements broke down in May.

The split between Islam's main sects dates to a dispute among Muslims over who would rule their community after the death of the Prophet Mohammad, and Shi'ites still regard his descendants as a line of imams blessed with divine guidance.

Today such disagreements over history remain emotive points of tension between the sects, but they are also divided over day -to-day issues including differing interpretations of Islamic law and the role and organization of the clergy.

In the Wahhabi teaching of Sunni Islam followed by the Saudi clergy and government, Shi'ite doctrine about imams is seen as incompatible with the concept of a monotheistic God.