President Muhamadu Buhari at the APC parley yesterday |
The Nigerian president
has condemned a fresh wave of violence in the country's north, calling
the attacks, blamed on Boko Haram, "inhuman and barbaric".
At least 160 people have been killed in attacks this week, including scores of men praying in mosques.
On Friday night, fighters attacked villages on the outskirts of
Maiduguri, capital of Borno State, as Muslims were breaking their
Ramadan fast. Gunfire lasted for hours and the army said it had repelled
the attackers.
Earlier in the day, at least 11 men were dragged from their homes in
the village of Miringa by Boko Haram and shot for escaping forced
conscription by their group, residents said.
"President Muhammadu Buhari has condemned the latest wave of killings
... describing them as most inhuman and barbaric," the presidency said
in a statement.
Buhari was also quoted calling Wednesday's killings in the town of
Kukawa a "heinous atrocity which must be unreservedly condemned by all
people of conscience".
In that assault, up to 145 people were killed as gunmen stormed mosques.
EU condemnation
"The attacks killing around 150 people in two villages in
northeastern Borno State in Nigeria and targeting Muslim worshippers
during the holy month of Ramadan are another attempt to destabilise the
country and the region," European Union foreign policy chief Federica
Mogherini said in a statement.
"The EU stands with the Nigerian people and authorities in our common fight against terrorism," she said.
Boko Haram fighters tried to take Maiduguri a number of times earlier
this year before an army offensive drove them out of large chunks of
territory.
The fighters have since resorted to deadly hit-and-run attacks on settlements and using suicide bombers.
They have intensified their strikes since Buhari vowed to crush them when he was sworn in on May 29.
Thousands of people have been killed and about 1.5 million displaced
during Boko Haram's six-year fight to create an Islamic state in the
northeast of Nigeria.
Source: Al Jazeera and agencies
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