GWOZA, BORNO STATE — The Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram launched a devastating assault on Ngoshe village in the Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State, northeastern Nigeria, on the evening of March 3, 2026. The attack, which began at approximately 5:30 p.m. and lasted almost the entire night, left dozens dead, hundreds displaced, and more than 300 people feared abducted. It was preceded by coordinated strikes on Konduga, Marte, Jakana, and Mainok — all in Borno State — forming part of an escalating campaign of terror against Christian and moderate Muslim communities in the region.

The attack was reported to Christian Solidarity International (CSI), the Christian human rights organization that has been documenting persecution in Nigeria and other hotspots. John Thuma, an evangelist in the community, told CSI that bodies remained lying in the streets days after the assault, with relatives unable to return safely to bury their dead.

Boko Haram released a propaganda video showing the aftermath of the carnage. In it, a voice was heard directing abuse at Christians while displaying a severed head, reportedly belonging to a Christian man. In a second video, the group declared it had “conquered” Ngoshe, announcing plans to rename it as a caliphate and hold an Eid-el-Fitr prayer within the village at the end of Ramadan. “We have slaughtered them, abducted their women and children, and enslaved them,” the recording stated.

Survivors told CSI that the injured had to walk several kilometers through dangerous terrain to reach health facilities in Pulka, the nearest village. Hundreds of women and children sought refuge there, but authorities and survivors alike reported that hundreds more remained unaccounted for. Estimates from those on the ground suggest over 300 people may have been abducted — taken as what Boko Haram chillingly called “legal property.”

Borno State Governor Prof. Zulum visited Pulka the day after the attack, telling survivors the assault was a response to ongoing military operations in the Sambisa Game Reserve near Gwoza. “The insurgents descended from the Mandara Hills to attack this town,” he said, calling on the Nigerian Army and federal government to intensify operations to clear the hills of militants.

The massacre occurred despite the recent deployment of U.S. troops to northeastern Nigeria. In early February 2026, three U.S. aircraft carrying troops and weapons arrived in Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, bringing the first group of roughly 100 American personnel. The deployment followed President Donald Trump’s intervention over the ongoing killings of Christians in central and northeastern Nigeria by radical Islamist groups seeking to establish an Islamic caliphate.

However, Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters spokesperson, General Samaila Uba, stated that the U.S. personnel “do not serve in a combat capacity and will not assume a direct operational role.” Reports indicated they were deployed to train Nigerian armed forces and assist with intelligence. For now, the intervention appears to have had little immediate impact in preventing massacres. A congressional report submitted to the U.S. president has outlined possible further interventions, but remains under consideration — while hundreds of Christians continue to die.

Weeks after the attack, survivors reported that promised government assistance had still not materialized. “The government pledged to send money and food, but we have seen nothing,” one survivor told CSI, speaking on condition of anonymity. “If they have brought anything, as a Christian, I have received nothing and have not even been informed about any distribution.”

Rev. Charles Ishidi, pastor of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN) in Pulka, told CSI that local families had opened their homes to those fleeing the violence. The COCIN church compound itself had taken in 99 men, women, and children. On Sunday, March 22 — two weeks after the attack — Governor Zulum returned to Pulka to oversee distribution of aid items including rice, corn, mattresses, clothing, and cash. He urged survivors to “be patient” as the federal and state governments work to secure the community.

Nigeria remains one of the most dangerous countries in the world for Christians. CSI and other human rights monitors have long documented the systematic targeting of Christian villages across central and northeastern Nigeria, where extremist groups are working to establish an Islamic caliphate. The full scale of the Ngoshe massacre — and the fate of the hundreds still unaccounted for — is still coming to light.