Nigeria violence: another 'Boko Haram kill 17' in village attack (photos)

The Islamist group Boko Haram has been accused of killing at least 17 people in an attack on a village in north-east Nigeria, close to where hundreds of schoolgirls were seized.

It comes a day after 118 people died in a double bombing in the central city of Jos, also blamed on Boko Haram.

In the latest attack, Boko Haram fighters reportedly spent hours killing and looting in the village of Alagarno.

Alagarno is near Chibok, from where the schoolgirls were abducted last month.

The abductions of more than 200 girls caused international outrage and prompted foreign powers to send military advisers to assist Nigeria's army.

People in north-east Nigeria are extremely vulnerable to attacks because many areas are no-go zones for the military and the insurgents operate freely, correspondents say.

The big question is where is Nigeria heading? The ferocity, frequency and geographical spread of the attacks is alarming. The military continues to fail to protect civilians in the north-east despite endless promises from the government that additional help is being sent there.

Boko Haram has in the past said it wanted to create an Islamic state. The current bombing campaign is indiscriminate, killing Christians and Muslims. Following most of the devastating attacks in the remote north-east this year, the government has been silent.

These days the president and government officials take less time to condemn, but there is no real sign that the military has the capacity to turn the tide against this brutal campaign of violence. That is terrifying.

'Fully committed'

Witnesses in Alagarno said the suspected Boko Haram fighters had arrived close to midnight, forcing many residents to flee into the bush.

The militants left the village some four hours later with stolen food and vehicles. One survivor told the BBC that every single building in the village had been torched.

Meanwhile, the search for bodies is continuing in Jos following Tuesday's twin bombings that reduced buildings to rubble.

The attacks targeted a crowded market and a hospital, and the second blast went off 30 minutes after the first - killing rescue workers who had rushed to the scene.

"People were using wheelbarrows to move bodies and limbs," eyewitness Janzen Weyi told the BBC.

Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan condemned the bombings, and said those who carried out the attacks were "cruel and evil".

His office said he was "fully committed to winning the war against terror".

The president announced increased measures to tackle the militants, including a multinational force around Lake Chad which comprises a battalion each from Chad, Niger, Cameroon and Nigeria.

The US also issued a statement condemning the Jos attack, as well as a suicide bombing in the northern city of Kano on 18 May.

 

It said it was working closely with Nigerian authorities to find a solution to the "regional security threat" posed by Boko Haram.

President Jonathan's government has been accused of not doing enough to tackle the Islamist extremists - criticism that has grown since the abduction of the schoolgirls.

Earlier this month, the Nigerian senate unanimously approved a six-month extension of a state of emergency in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states.

Boko Haram is fighting to overthrow the government and create an Islamic state. More than 1,000 people have been killed in attacks linked to the group this year alone.