Nigeria's military has
called for support in tackling Boko Haram after a major attack on a key
northeast town that is feared could be the worst in the bloody six-year
insurgency.
There are still no independently corroborated figures
for the huge numbers said to have been killed in Baga, on the shores of
Lake Chad in the far north of Borno State.
But defence
spokesperson Chris Olukolade said in a statement issued late on Saturday
that the description of the assault as "the deadliest" was "quite
valid".
"The attack on the town by the bloodhounds and their
activities since January 3rd, 2015 should convince well-meaning people
all over the world that Boko Haram is the evil all must collaborate to
end, rather than vilifying those working to check them," he said.
Nigeria's
military - West Africa's largest - has faced repeated criticism for
failing to end the six-year Islamist insurgency, as well as allegations
of human rights abuses.
Soldiers
have complained of a lack of adequate weapons and even refused to
deploy to take on the better-armed rebels, who want to create a hardline
Islamic state in northeast Nigeria.
With elections set for next
month, Nigeria's government has also been accused of playing politics
with the insurgency, as most of the areas worst affected by the violence
are main opposition strongholds.
But Olukolade said: "The
Nigerian military has not given up on Baga and other localities where
terrorist activities are now prevalent.
"Appropriate plans, men
and resources are presently being mobilised to address the situation,"
he said on defenceinfo.mil.ng, in the military's first detailed comment
on last weekend's attack.
The military and government often makes
such statements, without giving specific details, yet there are reports
of attacks on an almost daily basis.
On Saturday, two explosions
rocked northeast Nigeria, including one by a suicide bomber at a crowded
market in the Borno State capital, Maiduguri, by a young girl thought
to be just 10. Nineteen people were killed.
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