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A screen grab of propaganda video shows
the leader of the Islamist extremist group Boko Haram Abubakar Shekau
delivering a message ©- (Boko Haram/AFP)
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Nigeria's military on Wednesday
claimed that more than 300 Boko Haram fighters were killed when troops
recaptured the garrison town of Monguno in northeast Borno state.
"Over 300 terrorists were
killed while a few were also captured," defence spokesman Chris Olukolade
said in an emailed statement.
There was no independent
verification of the claims, which follow similar assertions about Boko Haram
casualties by Niger, Chad and Cameroon involved in the regional fight-back
against the militants.
Civilian vigilantes in the town
spoken to by AFP confirmed that the town had been retaken but said only that
there were heavy casualties, without specifying numbers.
Nigeria's military on Monday said it
had regained control of Monguno, after the militants captured the town on
January 25, sparking fears about an assault on the Borno state capital.
Monguno lies about about 125
kilometres (80 miles) north of Maiduguri, which has long been seen as a key
prize for the militants in their quest to establish a hardline Islamic state.
Olukolade claimed that the
"massive" casualties came after a two-day operation to liberate
Monguno and 10 other communities, which destroyed a cache of equipment, arms
and ammunition.
The cache included five different
types of armoured fighting vehicles, an anti-aircraft gun, some 50 cases of
shells and eight different types of machine guns.
Five rocket-propelled grenades, 49
boxes containing ammunition as well as 300 motorcycles were also destroyed, the
spokesman added.
Two Nigerian soldiers were killed
and 10 others injured in the operation, he said.
"The cordon and search
operations is continuing along with aggressive patrols by troops who are now
dominating the cleared communities," the statement said.
"The various phases of the
highly coordinated air and land operations is also ongoing in the designated
theatres being handled by contingents involved in the renewed counter-terrorism
campaign in and outside Nigeria."
Nigeria's military has frequently
made claims of successes against Boko Haram which have often been at odds with
eye-witness accounts on the ground.
But the recapture of Monguno appears
to be the latest in a growing list of army victories in the last month, with
Chadian troops spearheading the counter-offensive in border regions.
Suicide Attacks
Kill 38 As Boko Haram Threatens Nigeria Vote
Earlier
two suicide attacks in northeast Nigeria killed at least 38 people Tuesday,
less than six weeks from elections, as the leader of Boko Haram vowed to
disrupt the vote. The Islamist insurgency has already forced a delay in the
polls, initially scheduled for February 14, and officials had voiced hope that
a regional military offensive could contain the bloodshed before the new
election day, March 28.
But
the latest wave of attacks blamed on the rebels underscored the challenge
facing Nigeria and its neighbours — Cameroon, Chad and Niger — despite claims
of successes in the joint operation launched this month.
“This
election will not be held even if we are dead,” Boko Haram leader Abubakar
Shekau said in a new video, in what appeared to the first from the group
released on Twitter.
Speaking
before Shekau’s threat, Niger’s President Mahamadou Issoufou vowed that his
country would herald the end for the rebels, whose six-year insurgency has
killed more than 13,000 people.
“Niger
will be the death of Boko Haram,” he told a cheering crowd after a protest
against the insurgents in the capital Niamey.
But
Boko Haram has proved resilient an experts question whether the group can be
overpowered in the short-term.
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