At least 1,932 people were killed across Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states between April and June 2026, underscoring the persistent human toll of the Northeast conflict despite a significant decline in bomb and improvised explosive device (IED) attacks, a new United Nations report has revealed.
The figures are contained in the 2026 Second Quarter Humanitarian Access Snapshot released by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which assessed humanitarian conditions across the three insurgency-hit states.
While the report recorded notable improvements in explosive-related violence, it warned that intensified military offensives against non-state armed groups triggered fresh retaliatory attacks on civilian communities, displaced persons and humanitarian operations.
According to OCHA, 60 explosive ordnance incidents were recorded during the quarter, down from 67 during the same period in 2025. Incidents involving IEDs also declined from 65 to 54, while civilian casualties linked to explosives dropped dramatically from 163 to 54.
The UN attributed the improvement to sustained joint military operations by the Armed Forces of Nigeria and United States forces, particularly in northern and central Borno State, as well as reduced civilian movement in high-risk areas.
However, the report cautioned that the military gains were accompanied by renewed attacks by insurgents on several communities, including Monguno, Damasak, Damboa, Bama, Konduga, Marte, Dikwa, Kukawa, Mobbar and Gwoza in Borno State, Gujba in Yobe State, and Madagali in Adamawa State.
Many of the affected communities were hosting recently relocated civilians, further worsening humanitarian conditions.
The deteriorating security situation also disrupted humanitarian assistance.
OCHA disclosed that health and nutrition services were suspended in Dapchi, Bursari Local Government Area, after repeated attacks by armed groups, while aid operations in Madagali and Chibok were either suspended or significantly reduced following fresh raids.
Humanitarian workers also came under attack during the period.
The report revealed that a truck conveying relief materials was looted near Gubio in April, while two staff members of a non-governmental organisation were kidnapped in Monguno in June.
In another incident, a relief truck returning to Maiduguri after delivering supplies to Damasak struck an IED near Kareto, leaving its driver critically injured despite troops successfully repelling the attack.
Beyond insecurity, OCHA identified flooding, deteriorating infrastructure and bureaucratic restrictions as major obstacles to aid delivery.
A bridge collapse in Rann following heavy rainfall disrupted access to vulnerable communities, while restrictions on fertiliser movement imposed by security agencies slowed farming activities at the start of the planting season.
The report said humanitarian agencies had to intervene to secure approvals allowing fertiliser to reach farmers in hard-to-access communities.
OCHA also noted that rising fuel prices linked to the Middle East conflict increased transportation costs for humanitarian agencies, while additional administrative approvals demanded by state authorities further delayed the movement of relief supplies.
The report concluded that although military operations have reduced the threat posed by explosive devices, insecurity, attacks on aid workers, climate-related disruptions and bureaucratic bottlenecks continue to impede humanitarian access and expose millions of vulnerable residents to heightened risks across Nigeria’s North-East.
