A group of suspected Boko Haram militants rounded up a group of farmers working in their fields in Maiwa village, approximately five kilometers (just over three miles) outside the Borno State capital of Maiduguri. The militants shot and killed ten farmers, all of whom bore gunshot wounds. Additionally, four farmers were abducted by the attackers and remain missing, presumed kidnapped. The incident was confirmed by local militia leaders, including Umar Ari, who stated, “All the 10 farmers bore gunshot wounds”, and Ibrahim Liman, who confirmed the four missing farmers were believed to have been kidnapped.
12 Aug 2023 · Maiwa, Mafa, Borno
Deaths
10
Kidnapped
4
Total casualties
10
Perpetrators
Boko Haram
Response
No immediate military intervention or rescue operation for the abducted farmers was reported at the time
Displacement
Not systematically recorded. However, the attack, occurring just outside Maiduguri, likely caused fear and panic among local farming communities, with many farmers forced to keep off their farms due to intensified attacks
Socioeconomic drivers
The attack was part of a broader campaign by Boko Haram targeting farmers to disrupt food production, exacerbate food insecurity, and extort ransoms. The abduction of four farmers suggests a financial motive, as victims are often held for ransom.
Trajectory
This attack reflects Boko Haram's established modus operandi of targeting farmers in their fields, a tactic documented extensively across Borno State since at least 2020.
Cycle notes
This incident is a direct echo of Boko Haram's long‑standing pattern of massacring farmers, most notably the November 2020 Zabarmari massacre in which over 40 rice farmers were killed in Jere LGA. The attack also mirrors the November 2023 attack on rice farmers in Koshebe and the September 2023 attack on farmers in Bulakunkumma and Maiwa villages, where Boko Haram killed 10 farmers and abducted nine others. The recurrence of such attacks during harvest seasons suggests a deliberate, predictable cycle of violence designed to disrupt food production and terrorize rural populations. The abduction of farmers for ransom also echoes the group's financial strategy, which has been a consistent driver of violence since at least 2014. The fact that this attack occurred just outside Maiduguri — within sight of the state capital — underscores the persistent failure of security forces to protect even peri‑urban farming communities, a pattern that has defined the insurgency for over a decade
Pattern
Farmers Targeting
Related — Armed Attack
Gunmen killed one person and abducted a retired police officer and two women in Rafin Wake, Sabuwa LGA, Katsina State.
A large contingent of ISWAP fighters, reportedly on motorbikes and in pick-up trucks fitted with anti-aircraft guns, launched a coordinated assault on the military base and the town . The attackers targeted the base first; after hours of fighting, troops were forced to withdraw. The town fell to the insurgents, who then declared control.
Nine Boko Haram insurgents arrived on motorcycles and attacked farmers working in their fields with machetes. The attackers also carried rifles but did not use them, likely to avoid alerting the military stationed nearby. Residents reported that farmers were preparing their fields for the rainy season after being assured by authorities they could farm this year. Following the attack, a local militia (Civilian JTF) pursued the insurgents to Sojori village, killing four of them, while the rest escaped.