LAGOS, March 18, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Nigerian soldiers Wednesday killed 60 jihadists who planned to attack a military position in conflict-battered Borno state, two days after multiple suicide bomber attacks in the state capital, the military said.

Fighters from Boko Haram and the rival Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) group have ramped up attacks on military and civilian targets as Africa's most populous country grapples with a long-running insurgency.

The military said it had "successfully" repelled a coordinated overnight attack by insurgents of unclear affiliation, who tried to "breach the 68 Battalion Main Defensive Area" in Mallam Fatori, near the Niger border.

Troops and "supporting air components engaged the attackers decisively, neutralizing over 60 terrorist fighters, including some notorious commanders," it said.

The military shared images of dozens of bodies lined up on the ground with its statement posted on X.

It said "terrorists suspected to be members of Boko Haram/ISWAP" were moving on foot and were "supported by multiple armed drones".

News of the attack, which occurred shortly after midnight, came as the country's defence chiefs visited Maiduguri following Monday's triple suicide bombing in the city which killed 23 people.

ISWAP staged four assaults on military installations in Borno overnight Sunday to Monday, the army said.

Jihadist violence has 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 has killed more than 40,000 and displaced around two million, according to the United Nations.

Last month, the United States began deploying 200 troops to Nigeria to provide technical and training support to soldiers in fighting jihadist groups.