Nigeria: Maiduguri Bombings Signal Boko Haram Resurgence and Growing Threat to Civilians

Last updated: 16 September 2026

Photo: Boko Haram Bombing - Global Panorama

Deadly bombings in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State in northeastern Nigeria, killed at least 23 people and injured 108 others on the evening of March 16, 2026, Human Rights Watch reported on March 26. The attacks struck crowded public locations — including a market, the area near a post office, and the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital gate — and appear to have been indiscriminate, constituting a war crime under international humanitarian law. No armed group has claimed responsibility, but the Nigerian military described them as coordinated attacks by suspected Boko Haram fighters.

The Attacks and Their Impact

On the evening of March 16, 2026, a series of explosions rocked Maiduguri — the operational hub of Nigeria's northeastern counterinsurgency effort and a key humanitarian centre. Three locations were struck in rapid succession: Monday Market, the area near the main post office, and the gate of the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital. Police authorities confirmed 23 deaths and 108 injuries.

Human Rights Watch spoke with five witnesses. Ibrahim Talba, a 35-year-old tailor, had gone to a local restaurant opposite the hospital gate after breaking his fast during Ramadan. He described watching an argument between two young men and a security guard, followed by an explosion from a food flask that was thrown back, then a second explosion that injured him with shrapnel to his back, legs, and stomach.

Babagana Abubakar, a fruit seller near the post office, said the explosion "scattered everything" and he later recognised among the dead a young man who had bought bananas from him minutes before the blast. He said: "Whenever I close my eyes, I see the scene again, the bodies lying there. It keeps replaying in my mind. I have also lost my source of livelihood since all the fruits I sell were scattered everywhere."

Boko Haram's Resurgence

Jama'atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda'awati wal-Jihad (JAS), commonly known as Boko Haram, was significantly weakened after its longtime leader Abubakar Shekau died in 2021 during clashes with its rival splinter group, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). However, analysts say JAS appears to be making a comeback. In December 2025, a mosque in Maiduguri was bombed, killing five people — ending years of relative calm.

In 2020, then-ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda stated that her office had found reasonable grounds to believe that Boko Haram and its splinter groups, as well as Nigerian security forces, had committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in the northeast. That situation remains at the preliminary examination stage.

HRW Demands

"These latest attacks show that civilians in northeastern Nigeria remain dangerously exposed to deadly violence, despite years of government security efforts," said Anietie Ewang, Nigeria researcher at Human Rights Watch. "The resurgence of such attacks in Maiduguri is deeply alarming."

Human Rights Watch called on Nigerian authorities to urgently strengthen protection for civilians in high-risk areas, improve early warning and response measures, conduct swift and transparent investigations, and provide support to victims and those who have lost their livelihoods as a result of the attacks.

Source: Human Rights Watch — Nigeria: Maiduguri Bombings Show New Threat to Civilians (March 26, 2026)