Boko Haram jihadists have killed 53 soldiers and farmers in three days of attacks in northeastern Nigeria, security sources said Tuesday, in a new show of force ahead of February elections in the West African country.

Despite the government's insistence that Boko Haram is near defeat, the group has recently carried out a string of major attacks on military and civilian targets.

President Muhammadu Buhari, seeking re-election in February, faces widespread criticism over his security record as soldiers based in the northeast regularly complain of fatigue and insufficient supplies of food and arms.

The Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), a Boko Haram splinter group, killed at least 44 soldiers in attacks on three military bases at the weekend, according to security sources.

Of those, at least 43 were killed on Sunday in Metele, a remote village near the border with Niger, according to a military officer who requested anonymity.

"Our troops were completely routed and the terrorists captured the base after heavy fighting," he told AFP, adding that the base commander and three officers were among the dead.

A search was under way for survivors or further victims in the surrounding bush, he said.......https://www.erazzor.com/boko-haram-kills-53-soldiers-and-farmers-in-3-days/
https://www.erazzor.com/boko-haram-kills-53-soldiers-and-farmers-in-3-days/
https://www.erazzor.com/boko-haram-kills-53-soldiers-and-farmers-in-3-days/
https://www.erazzor.com/boko-haram-kills-53-soldiers-and-farmers-in-3-days/