185 people killed in clashes in Nigeria
Abuja: About 185 people were killed and several others wounded in a fishing community during fierce clashes between the Nigerian military and heavily-armed Boko Haram militants in the country’s Borno state, officials said.
A local government chairman, Lawan Kole, informed state officials yesterday that the authorities had found and buried at least 185 bodies as of Sunday afternoon.
Edokpaye, who did not dispute the casualty figures, said militants used civilians as human shields during the fighting.
In similar cases in the past, soldiers had been accused of shooting at civilian targets and this could account for the high casualty in the present confrontation.
Boko Haram Islamic extremists has been carrying out attacks in northern Nigeria since 2009.
