Nigerian forces backed by air
strikes seized the northeastern border town of Baga from Islamist group Boko
Haram on Saturday, the military said, a significant victory in an offensive
against an insurgency affecting four African states.
Retaking the town - at
Nigeria's border with Chad, Niger and Cameroon - was one of several in the past
two weeks, and particularly important as Baga was the headquarters of a
multinational force of troops from all four countries.
The militants had
claimed a Jan. 3 attack that killed scores, possibly hundreds, and left the
jihadists in control.
"We have secured
Baga. We are now in full control. There are only mopping up exercises left to
do," Defense Spokesman Major-General Chris Olukolade said by telephone.
In a statement minutes
earlier Olukolade had said that "a large number of terrorists had drowned
in Lake Chad" as troops advanced on Baga.
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