News / Africa
Boko Haram kills dozens in fresh attacks
04 Jun 2014 at 09:49hrs | Views
Boko Haram militants have killed dozens of people in fresh attacks on villages in Borno state in northern Nigeria, the BBC reported.
In one attack, gunmen reportedly fired on a crowd in a church compound.
Boko Haram has waged an increasingly bloody insurgency since 2009 to create an Islamic state in Nigeria.
The latest attacks come as the Nigerian army has denied reports that several generals have been found guilty of aiding Boko Haram in their insurgency.
Nigerian media reported on Tuesday that 10 generals and five other senior military officers had been tried before a court martial for supplying arms and information to the militant group.
However, a military spokesman called the reports "falsehoods".
This contradicted an earlier statement by the interior minister, Abba Moro, saying it was "good news" that the army had identified the accused, and that it sent a strong message to other serving officers.
State of emergency
Nigerian media said the latest attacks happened on Tuesday in Borno state.
Residents in the village of Attagara, close to the Cameroonian border, said that armed men had ordered them into a church compound.
They said they were led to believe the men were from the Nigerian military. Eyewitnesses said the men then opened fire on the crowd.
Nigerian media report that at least six villages were raided and 30 people killed.
Nigerian MP Peter Biye told the BBC there had been several similar raids in the area and that many homes had been destroyed.
Boko Haram, the group accused of being behind the attacks, has been holding more than 200 schoolgirls captive since last month.
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency in May 2013 in the three northern states where Boko Haram is most active - Borno, Adamawa and Yobe.
Boko Haram retaliated by stepping up its bombing campaign in cities and launching mass attacks on small towns and villages.
Who are Boko Haram?
In one attack, gunmen reportedly fired on a crowd in a church compound.
Boko Haram has waged an increasingly bloody insurgency since 2009 to create an Islamic state in Nigeria.
The latest attacks come as the Nigerian army has denied reports that several generals have been found guilty of aiding Boko Haram in their insurgency.
Nigerian media reported on Tuesday that 10 generals and five other senior military officers had been tried before a court martial for supplying arms and information to the militant group.
However, a military spokesman called the reports "falsehoods".
This contradicted an earlier statement by the interior minister, Abba Moro, saying it was "good news" that the army had identified the accused, and that it sent a strong message to other serving officers.
State of emergency
Nigerian media said the latest attacks happened on Tuesday in Borno state.
They said they were led to believe the men were from the Nigerian military. Eyewitnesses said the men then opened fire on the crowd.
Nigerian media report that at least six villages were raided and 30 people killed.
Nigerian MP Peter Biye told the BBC there had been several similar raids in the area and that many homes had been destroyed.
Boko Haram, the group accused of being behind the attacks, has been holding more than 200 schoolgirls captive since last month.
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency in May 2013 in the three northern states where Boko Haram is most active - Borno, Adamawa and Yobe.
Boko Haram retaliated by stepping up its bombing campaign in cities and launching mass attacks on small towns and villages.
Who are Boko Haram?
- Founded in 2002
- Initially focused on opposing Western education - Boko Haram means "Western education is forbidden" in the Hausa language
- Launched military operations in 2009 to create Islamic state
- Thousands killed, mostly in north-eastern Nigeria - also attacked police and UN headquarters in capital, Abuja
- Some three million people affected
- Declared terrorist group by US in 2013
Source - BBC
