Nigeria: Boko Haram Islamists attack Maiduguri City

(Baonghean) - On Sunday, February 1, the extremist Islamic organization Boko Haram launched an attack on the city of Maiduguri. Throughout Sunday morning, the terrorist group carried out an attack to gain control of Maiduguri - a strategically located city in northeastern Nigeria.

On Sunday, a fierce battle between the Army and Boko Haram took place in Maiduguri City, home to more than 1 million Nigerians. Due to the chaos, the two sides have not been able to count the number of people killed or injured. In the face of Boko Haram's fierce attacks, many people said they are very scared. They cannot imagine what will happen to them and their loved ones when Boko Haram defeats security forces and takes over Maiduguri City.

A group of soldiers from the extremist Islamic organization Boko Haram. Photo: AFP

On January 25, Boko Haram attempted to launch attacks to take control of the historic city of Maiduguri. Fortunately, the Nigerian Army repelled the attacks. However, on the same day, despite the defeat in Maiduguri, Boko Haram captured Monguno City and a nearby military base. The aforementioned locations are only about 130 km north of Maiduguri City.

In recent days, the extremist Islamic group Boko Haram has also carried out many attacks on the northern border between Cameroon and Nigeria. Fearing attacks by Boko Haram, on January 17, Chad - another neighboring country of Nigeria - also deployed more soldiers in border areas in case the extremist Islamic group attacks its border.

Faced with the threat and growth of the radical Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram, the African Union (AU) on Friday called on countries to form a regional fighting force. Accordingly, about 7,500 soldiers will be deployed to Nigeria to end the instability in this country.

However, the international community does not believe that the AU's solution can resolve the instability in Nigeria. In late 2014, five countries including Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger, Chad and Benin agreed to establish a similar force of 3,000 people. However, so far, due to disagreements between Nigeria and its neighbors, this force has not been able to operate.

Chu Thanh

According to Le Monde 1/2