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Chakawa and Kawuri attacks

Documents violence — written to inform, not to shock.

Illustrative

On the night of 26 January 2014, two attacks occurred simultaneously in northeastern Nigeria: one in Kawuri, a village in Konduga Local Government Area of Borno State, and another at a Catholic church in Chakawa village (also known as Waga Chakawa), located in Madagali Local Government Area of Adamawa State. Both attacks have been attributed to Boko Haram, the militant group that has carried out numerous mass-casualty attacks in the region.

In Kawuri, situated approximately 37 kilometers southeast of the Borno State capital Maiduguri, an estimated 85 people were killed overnight. The scale of the killing places this among the larger attacks attributed to the group during this period of the insurgency.

In Chakawa, the assault targeted worshippers at a Catholic church. Reports describe victims being killed by having their throats slit, while others were shot. Initial estimates put the death toll at 31, though this figure was later revised upward to 41.

A further attack occurred in Chakawa on 31 January 2014, in which a pastor and 10 members of his congregation were killed, indicating that the village was targeted on two separate occasions within the same period.

Taken together, the combined death toll across the Kawuri and Chakawa attacks has been put at a minimum of 138 people. The attacks form part of a broader pattern of violence against civilian and religious communities in Nigeria's northeast attributed to Boko Haram during this era of its insurgency.

No individuals have been publicly named as charged, convicted, or otherwise identified as perpetrators in connection with these specific attacks based on available source material. The available documentation for this case is limited primarily to a single consolidated summary source, with contemporaneous news coverage referenced but not independently detailed here.

Key facts

Victims
On file
Date
2014
Location
Kawuri, Konduga LGA, Borno State / Chakawa, Madagali LGA, Adamawa State, Nigeria
Case status
unsolved

Case timeline

  1. 2014-01-26

    Simultaneous overnight attacks occur at Kawuri, Borno State, and at a Catholic church in Chakawa village, Madagali Local Government Area, Adamawa State. An estimated 85 people are killed in Kawuri; an estimated 31 (later revised to 41) are killed in Chakawa.

  2. 2014-01-31

    A second attack in Chakawa results in the deaths of a pastor and 10 members of his congregation.

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
In January 2014, attackers blamed on Boko Haram killed an estimated 138 or more people in coordinated overnight assaults on Kawuri village in Borno State and Chakawa village in Adamawa State, Nigeria.
Where did the crime happen?
Kawuri, Konduga LGA, Borno State / Chakawa, Madagali LGA, Adamawa State, Nigeria.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: unsolved.

Sources

  1. Chakawa and Kawuri attackswikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. Contemporaneous coverage — BBC Newsnews · BBC News · 2026-07-07
  3. Contemporaneous coverage — aljazeera.comnews · aljazeera.com · 2026-07-07