MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) —
Chadian troops have seized a strategically located northeast Nigerian
town from Boko Haram, but not before the defeated Islamic extremists
killed hundreds of civilians, Chad's military said.
The Chadian
forces regained control Monday of Dikwa, a town occupied by the
militants for weeks, said Chad's military spokesman Col. Azem
Bermandoua.
One soldier was
killed and 34 were wounded, most by a suicide car bomber, Bermandoua
said on national television. Dikwa is at a crossroads to two border
crossings with Chad and a route north to Lake Chad.
Separately,
southwest of Dikwa, Nigerian troops Monday repelled an attack by Boko
Haram on Konduga, killing more than 70 insurgents, according to a
Nigerian corporal who helped defend the town. A security official
confirmed the attack. Both spoke on condition of anonymity because they
are not authorized to speak to reporters.
Boko
Haram invaded the town between herds of cattle and a suicide bomber
driving an explosives-laden car, the corporal said. But the military had
been warned and were well prepared to drive back the insurgents, he
said.
Konduga has been
attacked many times in recent months because it is a final defense for
Maiduguri, the biggest northeastern city 35 kilometers (25 miles) away
that is the birthplace of Boko Haram.
Nigeria's
President Goodluck Jonathan said Tuesday that "utmost care was being
taken by the federal government to avoid collateral damage to the lives
and properties of civilians as the military intensifies its ongoing
offensive against Boko Haram." The military has been accused of gross
abuses including indiscriminate killings of civilians. Jonathan claimed
his government has investigated previous reports of abuse which "were
mostly blown out of proportion for political reasons."
The
United Nations said Tuesday that fighting in the northeast forced
16,000 Nigerians to flee across the border into Cameroon over the
weekend. Some 1.6 million Nigerians have been forced from their homes
and unknown hundreds of girls and young men have been kidnapped in the
6-year-old Islamic uprising by Nigeria's home-grown Boko Haram group.
International
concern has risen along with fatalities in the uprising: Some 10,000
people were killed last year compared to 2,000 in the four previous
years, according to the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations.
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