Nigeria

Nigeria elections: Blast hits presidential rally in Gombe

Nigeria elections: Blast hits presidential rally in Gombe BBC News Africa 2 February 2015   A female suicide bomber has blown up herself in northern Nigeria's Gombe city, minutes after President Goodluck Jonathan left a campaign rally there. At least one person was killed and 18 others were wounded in the blast, police and hospital sources said. Mr Jonathan is standing for re-election on 14 February against former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari.

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Boko Haram insurgents attack northeast Nigeria’s capital city

Boko Haram insurgents attack northeast Nigeria’s capital city Lanre Ola, Reuters 1 February 2015   MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (Reuters) – Boko Haram insurgents attacked the outskirts of Maiduguri in northeast Nigeria on Sunday, security sources said, their second assault in a week on a city they hope to make the capital of a breakaway Islamist state. At least eight people were killed as the militants clashed with soldiers, witnesses and a hospital

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Nigeria’s Boko Haram unrest: African leaders urged to act

Nigeria's Boko Haram unrest: African leaders urged to act BBC News Africa 26 January 2015 African states should act quickly and collectively to curb the growing threat posed by Nigeria's militant Islamists, the African Union chief has said. Cross-border raids into Cameroon showed the dangers the Boko Haram group posed, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma said. Nigeria has rejected AU or UN intervention, saying regional armies are capable of dealing with the threat.

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Africa’s Islamic state

Africa’s Islamic state Winnipeg Free Press 25 January 2015   Deflecting blame is a skill prized by politicians the world over. Many could, however, still learn a thing or two from President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria, who has found no end of scapegoats for Boko Haram, a vicious insurgent group in the northeast of Africa’s most populous country. Jonathan’s most common evasion is the assertion that Boko Haram is a regional problem that

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Nigeria’s Boko Haram: Baga destruction ‘shown in images’

Nigeria's Boko Haram: Baga destruction 'shown in images' BBC 15 January 2015   Satellite images of Nigerian towns attacked by Boko Haram show widespread destruction and suggest a high death toll, Amnesty International says. The images show some 3,700 structures damaged or destroyed in Baga and Doron Baga this month, Amnesty said.   Nigeria's government has disputed reports that as many as 2,000 were killed, putting the toll at just 150. Amnesty

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Nigerian refugees strain Chad, Niger

Nigerian refugees strain Chad, Niger Misha Hussain and Abdoulaye Massalaki, IOL News 13 January 2015   Dakar/Niamey - Some 20 000 Nigerians have fled to Chad, Niger and Cameroon in the past two weeks after their towns and villages were attacked by Islamist sect Boko Haram, according to the United Nations and government figures. The influx of refugees has put further strain on some of the poorest nations in Africa, which are already struggling

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Boko Haram crisis: Nigeria estimates Baga deaths at 150

Boko Haram crisis: Nigeria estimates Baga deaths at 150 BBC News 12 January 2015   Nigeria says the number of people who lost their lives in an assault by Boko Haram militants on the town of Baga last week was no more than 150. The defence ministry said this figure included "many of the terrorists" who had attacked the town in Borno state and faced resistance by troops. Local officials earlier estimated the number of deaths at as many as 2,000.

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Nigeria violence: Female suicide bombers hit market

Nigeria violence: Female suicide bombers hit market BBC News Africa 11 January 2015   Two female suicide bombers struck a crowded market in north-east Nigeria on Sunday, killing at least four other people and injuring dozens. An eyewitness in the city of Potiskum, in Yobe state, told the BBC that the second bomb went off shortly after the first, hitting those helping victims. On Saturday, a bomb strapped to a girl aged around 10 killed at least

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Nigeria: Video from Boko Haram shows civilian massacre

Video from Boko Haram shows civilian massacre News Services, The Washington Post 27 December 2014   Maiduguri, Nigeria -- A new video from Nigeria's home-grown Boko Haram extremists shows gunmen shooting civilians lying face down in a dormitory and a leader saying they are being killed because they are "infidels" or nonbelievers. "We have made sure the floor of this hall is turn red with blood, and this is how it is going to be in all future attacks

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Nigeria-US training cancellation ‘logistical, not political’: Abuja

Nigeria-US training cancellation 'logistical, not political': Abuja By AFP 5 December 2014 Nigeria on Friday said that a decision to cancel US training of its soldiers to fight Boko Haram was a logistical, not a political decision. The US Embassy in Abuja announced on Monday that the Nigerian government had halted a training programme of an army battalion, which would have developed into a unit to take on the militants. The cancellation came after

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