13 villagers killed by Boko Haram in Nigeria

Militants from the Boko Haram terrorist group have killed at least 13 people from a village in northeastern Nigeria.

The attack happened in the restive Borno state late Sunday, according to authorities and witnesses.

Local farmer Moha Saleh told AFP that at least 27 other people were also injured in the attack.

The attack began when the Takfiri militants stormed the village and started to open fire on people and burn houses.

"They set many houses ablaze after accusing us of telling soldiers their whereabouts," he said.

Meanwhile, the Nigerian government said it carried out airstrikes in the northeast of the country to repel an attack by Boko Haram and killed a "large number" of the extremists on Sunday.

The Nigerian Air Force said it "successfully repelled an attack on Bita village by the Boko Haram terrorist group." The airstrikes were coordinated with a combined ground operation after spotting militants planning an assault.

"Consequently, a large number of the insurgents were killed and several others were injured," the Nigerian military said in a statement it released shortly after the military operation.

Boko Haram has staged a string of strikes targeting markets in Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon that have killed and wounded scores in the past month.

The air raids came as Nigeria and its neighbors prepared to launch a new multinational force to combat Boko Haram, in the face of the group's escalating violence in the region.

The new 8,700-strong multinational force is made up of troops from Nigeria as well as Cameroon, Chad and Niger, and was expected to go into action soon, the Nigerian government said earlier this month.

According to Amnesty International, at least 17,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed since 2009, when Boko Haram launched its violent uprising to try to impose its rule on the African country.



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