Boko Haram kills soldiers in ambush

Members of the radical Islamist sect Boko Haram ambushed an army patrol in Nigeria’s restive north-east and killed 12 soldiers, a spokesman for the group said yesterday.

The military disputed the claim, though residents of the neighbourhood in Maiduguri where the attack happened said they heard the fierce gun battle and explosions on Sunday night where the sect said they attacked.

“We are waxing stronger by the day despite the arrest of some of our top members,” said a sect spokesman.

Meanwhile, the sect said it beheaded three people who provided information about the group to authorities.

The military did not comment on the claims of so-called “extrajudicial” killings, though they often occur in Nigeria.

Boko Haram is carrying out increasingly sophisticated and bloody attacks in its campaign to implement strict Shariah law and avenge Muslim killings in Nigeria.