Boko Haram suffererd heavy casualties after Chadian assault in Nigeria

Boko Haram militants suffered heavy casualties when Chadian troops pushed into Nigeria this week, residents who fled the fighting told AFP on Thursday.



Chad’s army said on Tuesday evening that they had seized control of the town of Dikwa, which is about 50 kilometres (31 miles) southwest of the Nigerian border town of Gamboru.

The offensive deep inside Nigerian territory was a first and suggested a strategy to tackle other rebel-controlled areas in northeastern Borno state, which is the group’s stronghold.

The Chadians are part of a four-country coalition mounting a regional fight-back against the Islamists.

“Chadian soldiers took over Dikwa from Boko Haram after heavy fighting on Tuesday,” Bababura Diwa, who lives in the town, said by telephone from Fotokol, across the border in northern Cameroon.

Diwa said the Chadians came from Gamboru, which they previously recaptured, with heavy artillery power and overpowered a group of militants at Lomani village, 15 kilometres from Dikwa.

“When they came into Dikwa there was intense fighting but at last they subdued the Boko Haram fighters,” he added.