Did Boko Haram Take Over Nigerian Army’s Barracks? Fact Emerges As Video Goes Viral

Did Boko Haram Take Over Nigerian Army’s Barracks? Fact Emerges As Video Goes Viral

  • Since 2009, Boko Haram and its factions have launched an uprising in northern Nigeria
  • Despite the Nigerian armed forces' speeches assuaging the fears of citizens, the situation remains difficult to completely eradicate
  • A viral X post alleged that the Islamist extremists carried out a significant incursion into military bases in Nigeria; it has now been fact-checked

Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 5 years of experience in fact-checking.

Maiduguri, Borno state - An X (formerly Twitter) user, @K3lv1nB0b0, claimed that Boko Haram outlaws took over several Nigerian military barracks recently.

@K3lv1nB0b0 alleged in a nearly two-minute video posted on Sunday, October 12, that Boko Haram terrorists celebrated their purported victory in West Africa's most populous nation, Nigeria.

Fact emerges on claim Boko Haram took over Nigerian Army’s barracks as video investigated/Untrue that Boko Haram seized Nigerian Army barracks.
The viral video showing 'Boko Haram taking over army barracks' is not from Nigeria. Photo credit: HQ Nigerian Army. Photo credit: @HQNigerianArmy
Source: Twitter

Legit.ng reports that in Nigeria, activities of Boko Haram elements have led to about 38,683 mortality, 2.5 million displacements, and an estimated 952,029 children drop-outs.

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The caption of @K3lv1nB0b0's video tweet reads:

“Boko Haram taking over many Nigerian military barracks and rejoicing for their victory."

The video can be viewed below:

The footage shows several trucks transporting heavily armed men across a vast stretch of land. Gunfire echoes throughout the video as the men speak in an unidentified language, some cheering loudly.

The clip is filmed by one of the men, who repeatedly turns the camera toward himself and then back to the environment.

The claim that it was Boko Haram militants who were reportedly rejoicing after taking over “many” Nigerian military barracks has since gathered over one million views.

It has also garnered over 3,000 likes, 2,900 reposts, more than 1,300 bookmarks, and over 1,000 comments.

But how true is the claim? Legit.ng checked.

Verification of Boko Haram-related claim

We conducted a reverse image search of the video and found that it was posted on Facebook in September.

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Going by the Facebook’s page details, it was posted by a Sudanese account.

A clearer version of the video, uploaded to YouTube on Wednesday, October 1, provided supporting details.

The camouflage that the men in the video wore also bore crests of the Sudanese flag.

Following this scrutiny, we found that the claim that the men in the video are Boko Haram terrorists is false. The footage was not recorded in Nigeria.

Read more on Nigerian Army:

Explosion rocks military barracks in Borno

In a previous story, Legit.ng reported that panic gripped residents of Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, as multiple explosions rocked the Giwa Barracks in the early hours of Thursday, May 1, 2025.

The incident reportedly began at about 12:05 am, with residents in the vicinity forced out of their homes by the sounds of loud blasts and the sight of red flares lighting up the sky around the barracks.

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Legit.ng reports that men of the fire service stormed the scene, with sirens sounding all around the area.

Source: Legit.ng

Authors:
Ridwan Adeola Yusuf avatar

Ridwan Adeola Yusuf (Current Affairs Editor) Ridwan Adeola Yusuf is a content creator with more than nine years of experience, He is also a Current Affairs Editor at Legit.ng. He holds a Higher National Diploma in Mass Communication from the Polytechnic Ibadan, Oyo State (2014). Ridwan previously worked at Africa Check, contributing to fact-checking research works within the organisation. He is an active member of the Academic Excellence Initiative (AEI). In March 2024, Ridwan completed the full Google News Initiative Lab workshop and his effort was recognised with a Certificate of Completion. Email: ridwan.adeola@corp.legit.ng.