A report in The New Humanitarian says that US military strikes in Sokoto in December 2025 killed 155 Lakurawa terrorists.
The attacks, done with the help of Nigerian leaders, also left 200 Lakurawa fighters missing the following week.
Tomahawk missiles, fired from a US destroyer in the Gulf of Guinea, hit three areas in Sokoto State: Isa, Tangaza, and Tambuwal. Lakurawa is mainly in Tangaza. Tambuwal isn’t known for violence, and Isa is a bandit area controlled by Bello Turji.
Turji is thought to have lived through the attack, but a Lakurawa camp in Tangaza took heavy losses.
The New Humanitarian says the first missile killed about 30 fighters. When survivors gathered to check the damage and help the injured, a second missile hit, killing them too.
About 155 Lakurawa died, and 19 died from injuries.
One of the key Lakurawa commanders, Dando Sibu, missed the second missile by leaving just before it hit.
After the strikes, about 200 Lakurawa fighters disappeared, and the group lost about half their cattle, which is how they make a lot of money.
On December 31, the group attacked Birnin Yauri in Kebbi State, killing at least 21 civilians and beheading nine.
The US targeted Lakurawa, but other groups like Boko Haram and Ansaru were not hit.
