Cameroonian soldiers enter Nigerian village, sparking panic in Cross River.

By Nkiruka Nnorom

Panic erupted in the village of Danare, located in Boki Local Government Area of Cross River State, after more than 200 Cameroonian soldiers reportedly crossed the Nigerian border to patrol the area.

According to social‑media posts, the troops entered the community during heavy rain, moving through residential streets before being confronted by local residents. The sudden appearance of armed foreign soldiers caused widespread fear and confusion, prompting many villagers to flee their homes.

Videos shared online show the soldiers patrolling the community.

Former Boki LGA Vice Chairman Hon. Kingsley Mbia arrived at the scene and urged the soldiers to withdraw, arguing that their presence violated Nigeria’s sovereignty. No shots were fired during the encounter.

Community members said this was at least the fourth incursion of its kind in the area near the porous border with Cameroon’s Bodam district. They linked the repeated cross‑border movements to the Anglophone crisis in Cameroon and unresolved disputes over the Bakassi Peninsula.

The area remains volatile, with residents recalling the 2017 shooting incident in which six people were killed in an attack allegedly carried out by Cameroonian forces.

Border tensions rooted in history

Danare lies along Nigeria’s 1,690 km border with Cameroon, a stretch that has seen incursions for over two decades. The tensions stem partly from the 2008 handover of the Bakassi Peninsula to Cameroon following a 2002 International Court of Justice ruling. While the peninsula is coastal, the ruling and subsequent Greentree Agreement left several inland communities, including parts of Boki, with contested and poorly demarcated borders.

The situation worsened after 2016, when Cameroon’s North‑West and South‑West regions descended into conflict between separatist fighters and government forces. The Anglophone crisis has driven thousands of refugees into Cross River and Taraba states, with border communities like Danare often caught in the middle.

Residents are now calling on the federal government to deploy more security personnel along the border and intensify diplomatic engagement with Cameroon to stop further incursions and protect Nigerian territory.

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