Nigerian ground forces backed by air strikes are fighting to
reclaim Baga from Islamist militant group Boko Haram which seized the
northeastern town and a nearby military base at the weekend, a government
spokesman said on Friday.
"Since the first attack last weekend on Baga, security
forces have been actively pursuing the militants," Mike Omeri said in a
statement. "Security forces have responded rapidly, and have deployed
significant military assets and conducted air strikes."
At least 100 people were killed when Boko Haram attacked
Baga last weekend, according to the district head.
Witnesses who escaped to neighbouring towns and Borno state
capital Maiduguri said the insurgents had razed many buildings and homes and
killed dozens of civilians in subsequent raids this week.
Soldiers had fled the area after the nearby army base, which
is the headquarters of a multinational force comprising troops from Chad, Niger
and Cameroon, by Lake Chad was overrun.
Some 300 km (200 miles) away, on Friday evening, gunfire,
explosions and heavy artillery fire were heard on the outskirts of Yobe state
capital Damaturu.
"We can hear the artillery fire and then the ground
shaking," a Reuters cameraman said.
Boko Haram has been waging a 5-year insurgency to carve out
an Islamic state in northeastern Nigeria.
Government spokesman Omeri said the National Emergency
Management Agency, working with the Red Cross, was providing humanitarian
assistance to 2,000 people who had fled Baga.
Some 2,000 more people crossed the border to Chad over the
last week, prompting the country to call for international aid. Cameroon has
also appealed for aid to help fight the militants.
Source-Reuters
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