2.2.6. Yobe

Table of contents

2.2.6. Yobe

Yobe state is comprised of the following 17 LGAs: Bursari, Damaturu, Geidam, Bade, Gujba, Gulani, Fika, Fune, Jakusko, Karasuwa, Machina, Nangere, Nguru, Potiskum, Tarmuwa, Yunusari and Yusufari. The capital city is Damaturu.862

The main ethnic groups include Kanuri, Fulani, Hausa, Kare-Kare, Bolewa, Ngizim, Bade, Ngamo and Shuwa.863

UNFPA and the US Census Bureau projected the population of Yobe in 2022 at 3 649 607, based on figures from the 2006 census figures.864

a) Conflict dynamics and main actors

For a general overview on actors in Nigeria, please see section 1.1 Main Actors.

Alongside Borno and Adamawa, Yobe is one of the main bases of Boko Haram and ISWAP in Nigeria. The state’s south has been integrated into ISWAP’s Faruq wilaya (‘province’).865 A July 2024 report by the consulting firm Nextier identified three LGAs in Yobe (Damaturu, Gujba and Geidam) as being part of what it called the ‘Northeast Belt of Insurgency’.866

Deadly attacks by suspected armed groups/insurgents targeted communities in Fika and Potiskum (January 2024),867 Geidam (January and August 2024),868 Damaturu (February 2024),869 Gujba (May 2024),870 Yunusari (May 2025),871 and notably in Tarmuwa LGA872 where insurgents conducted a large-scale attack on Mafa village in September 2024.873 The latter attack involved around 150 assailants armed with rifles and RPGs and riding motorcycles, with sources variously attributing the incident to either Boko Haram874 or ISWAP.875 Apart from communities, insurgents targeted NAF troops in at least two deadly assaults on military sites in the same LGA in April and May 2025876 and in a suicide car attack in January 2025877 in Gujba LGA.878 SBM Intelligence recorded two more bombings in May 2024 and April 2025, attributing both to ISWAP.879 Yobe also saw several attempted and actual kidnappings.880

b) Security incidents and impact on the population

In the period from 1 January 2024 to 31 August 2025, ACLED recorded 128 security incidents in Yobe state that resulted in a total of 225 fatalities. Of these incidents, 58 were coded as battles, 19 as explosion/remote violence, 7 as riots, and 44 as violence against civilians.881

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Figure 6: Evolution of security events coded as battles, explosions/remote violence, riots, and violence against civilians in Yobe state, 1 January 2024 – 31 August 2025, based on ACLED data.882

Security incidents were recorded by ACLED in 12 LGAs of the state, with the highest number documented in Gujba LGA (75 incidents), followed by Damaturu (11) and Tarmua LGAs (10). No incidents were recorded in five LGAs. According to ACLED, ISWAP, Boko Haram and unidentified armed groups (coded as either ‘Actor1’ or ‘Actor2’) were involved in the majority of incidents coded as violence against civilians.883

According to Nigeria Watch, in 2024 Yobe state recorded the country’s second-highest number of fatalities (123) related to attacks by insurgent groups and government counter-operations.884

While the UN Secretary-General stated that the September 2024 insurgent attack on Mafa caused on unknown number of casualties,885 other sources gave various estimates of the death toll, including at least 81 people (AFP quoting local officials),886 over 100 people (Al Jazeera quoting a resident),887 at least 128 people (the UN Resident Coordinator)888 or even 170 or more villagers, mostly men and boys (the New York Times quoting local sources).889 Moreover, at least 17 fatalities resulted from attacks by suspected armed groups/insurgents on communities in Fika and Potiskum,890 Geidam,891 Damaturu,892 Gujba893 and Yunusari.894

Conflict-related infrastructure damage - The attack on Mafa also resulted in infrastructure damage, with assailants burnt down businesses, shelters, and other property and planted IEDs along roads leading towards the community.895

Road security - No information could be found during the reference period.

Displacement, movement and return - As of November 2024, IOM estimated the number of IDPs in Yobe state at 167 320,896 compared to 155 168 as of September 2024. IOM lists insurgency (94 %) as the main reason for displacement in the state.897 As of August 2024, there were 356 344 returnees in the state, including IDP returnees and returnees from abroad.898 The IDMC reported that over the year 2024, violence and conflict across several states, including Borno, Yobe and Katsina, had prompted the displacement of 57 000 people.899 The September 2024 attack on Mafa displaced thousands of individuals to Babban Gida town (Tarmuwa LGA’s headquarters) and other nearby communities, as well as into Borno state.900 Instances of attack or threat of attack by armed groups in Fika and Potiskum in January 2024,901 Gujba in May 2024902 and Yunusari in January 2025903 each resulted in the displacement of thousands of people.

c) State response in maintaining law and order

While several security breaches led to insurgent attacks (e.g., in Mafa and Geidam in 2024),904 security operations resulted in the killing or arrest of dozens of insurgents905 (e.g., in Donga, Takum and Tarmuwa LGAs),906 the arrest of suspected members of a gang specialised in kidnapping for ransom,907 and the rescue of kidnapping victims.908

  • 862

    Nigeria, Federal Government of Nigeria, States, Yobe, n.d., url

  • 863

    Nigeria, Federal Government of Nigeria, States, Yobe, n.d., url

  • 864

    UNFPA and US Census Bureau, Nigeria – Subnational Population Statistics, 2022, modified 11 September 2024, url

  • 865

    Samuel, M. and Stoddard, E., Resurgent jihadist violence in northeast Nigeria part of a worrying regional trend, TNH, 2 June 2025, url

  • 866

    Nextier, Nigeria’s Northeast Belt of Insurgency and the Challenge of Refugees, 17 July 2024, url, p. 1

  • 867

    IOM, Flash Report: Rapid Assessment of Fika and Postiskum LGA Attacks, Yobe State North-east Nigeria, 19 February 2024, url

  • 868

    International Crisis Group, Crisis Watch – Nigeria: January 2024 – August 2025, n.d., url

  • 869

    Premium Times, Boko Haram insurgents kill two civilians, abduct three others in Yobe, 5 February 2024, url; Vanguard, Boko Haram: We only closed 3 markets, not 8 — Yobe Govt clarifies, 4 July 2025, url

  • 870

    IOM, Flash Report Population Displacement: North-east Nigeria: Yobe State — Nigeria, 31 May 2024, url

  • 871

    IOM, Flash Report 159 Population Displacement: North-east Nigeria: Yobe State, 22 May 2025, url

  • 872

    Punch, Many feared killed, houses razed in Yobe terror attack, 3 September 2024, url

  • 873

    International Crisis Group, Crisis Watch – Nigeria: January 2024 – August 2025, n.d., url

  • 874

    Al Jazeera, Dozens killed in Boko Haram attack on village in northeastern Nigeria, 4 September 2024, url; AFP, At least 81 killed in Nigeria in suspected Boko Haram attack: officials, 3 September 2024

  • 875

    International Crisis Group, Crisis Watch – Nigeria: January 2024 – August 2025, n.d., url; HumAngle, ISWAP Attack Devastates Mafa In Northeast Nigeria, Leaving A Grim Toll of Death, 4 September 2024, url

  • 876

    Daily Trust, Four soldiers gunned down as Boko Haram invades military base in Yobe, 3 May 2025, url

  • 877

    AFP, 27 Nigerian soldiers killed in jihadist suicide attack: army, 26 January 2025

  • 878

    Daily Trust, How B/Haram IED explosions killed 121 civilians, soldiers in 16 months, 9 July 2025, url

  • 879

    SBM Intelligence, Bombings in Nigeria: A shifting threat, 26 June 2025, url

  • 880

    Daily Trust, Police rescue abducted 22-year-old in Yobe, 23 May 2025, url; Nigerian Tribune, Police arrest two suspected kidnappers in Yobe, 10 April 2025, url; Premium Times, Boko Haram insurgents kill two civilians, abduct three others in Yobe, 5 February 2024, url

  • 881

    EUAA analysis based on publicly available ACLED data. ACLED, Curated Data Files, Africa, data covering 1 January 2024 to 31 August 2025, as of 10 September 2025, url

  • 882

    EUAA analysis based on publicly available ACLED data. ACLED, Curated Data Files, Africa, data covering 1 January 2024 to 31 August 2025, as of 10 September 2025, url

  • 883

    EUAA analysis based on publicly available ACLED data. ACLED, Curated Data Files, Africa, data covering 1 January 2024 to 31 August 2025, as of 10 September 2025, url

  • 884

    Nigeria Watch, Fourteenth report on violence in Nigeria 2024, 2025, url, p. 12

  • 885

    UNSG, Activities of the United Nations Office for West Africa and the Sahel, S/2024/871, 2 December 2024, url, para. 26

  • 886

    AFP, At least 81 killed in Nigeria in suspected Boko Haram attack: officials, 3 September 2024

  • 887

    Al Jazeera, Dozens killed in Boko Haram attack on village in northeastern Nigeria, 4 September 2024, url

  • 888

    UNOCHA, Statement by the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mohamed Malick Fall, on the killing of scores of men and boys in Mafa, Yobe State, 11 September 2024, url

  • 889

    New York Times (The), They Thought It Was Safe to Go Home. Then They Were Slaughtered., 6 September 2024, url

  • 890

    IOM, Flash Report: Rapid Assessment of Fika and Postiskum LGA Attacks, Yobe State North-east Nigeria, 19 February 2024, url

  • 891

    International Crisis Group, Crisis Watch – Nigeria: January 2024 – August 2025, n.d., url

  • 892

    Premium Times, Boko Haram insurgents kill two civilians, abduct three others in Yobe, 5 February 2024, url; Vanguard, Boko Haram: We only closed 3 markets, not 8 — Yobe Govt clarifies, 4 July 2025, url

  • 893

    IOM, Flash Report Population Displacement: North-east Nigeria: Yobe State — Nigeria, 31 May 2024, url

  • 894

    IOM, Flash Report 159 Population Displacement: North-east Nigeria: Yobe State, 22 May 2025, url

  • 895

    UNOCHA, Statement by the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mohamed Malick Fall, on the killing of scores of men and boys in Mafa, Yobe State, 11 September 2024, url

  • 896

    IOM, Nigeria — Displacement Report Round 49: Needs Monitoring in North-East Nigeria — March 2025, 7 March 2025, url, p. 6; As of 1 August 2025, UNHCR mentions the same IDP numbers and 108 returnees. UNHCR, Nigeria – Forcibly Displaced Populations, 13 August 2025, url

  • 897

    IOM, Nigeria — Displacement Report Round 49: Needs Monitoring in North-East Nigeria — March 2025, 7 March 2025, url, pp. 6, 9

  • 898

    IOM, Nigeria — Displacement Report Round 49: Needs Monitoring in North-East Nigeria — March 2025, 7 March 2025, url, p. 20

  • 899

    IDMC, GRID 2025, Global Report on Internal Displacement, 2025, url, p. 32

  • 900

    UNOCHA, Statement by the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Nigeria, Mohamed Malick Fall, on the killing of scores of men and boys in Mafa, Yobe State, 11 September 2024, url

  • 901

    IOM, Flash Report: Rapid Assessment of Fika and Postiskum LGA Attacks, Yobe State North-east Nigeria, 19 February 2024, url

  • 902

    IOM, Flash Report Population Displacement: North-east Nigeria: Yobe State — Nigeria, 31 May 2024, url

  • 903

    UNOCHA, Borno, Adamawa and Yobe (BAY) states – Situation Report (As of 20 February 2025), 20 February 2025, url, p. 4

  • 904

    Blueprint, Insecurity: Buni meets heads of security agencies in Yobe, adopt new measures, 12 September 2024, url

  • 905

    Punch, Soldiers nab suspected Nigerien terrorist in Yobe, kill scores across theatres, 29 July 2025, url; Cable (The), Troops arrest eight suspects for ‘supplying arms to terrorists’ in Taraba, Yobe, 2 September 2024, url

  • 906

    Cable (The), Troops arrest eight suspects for ‘supplying arms to terrorists’ in Taraba, Yobe, 2 September 2024, url

  • 907

    Nigerian Tribune, Police arrest two suspected kidnappers in Yobe, 10 April 2025, url

  • 908

    Punch, Soldiers nab suspected Nigerien terrorist in Yobe, kill scores across theatres, 29 July 2025, url; Daily Trust, Police rescue abducted 22-year-old in Yobe, 23 May 2025, url