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CHAD-UNREST-BOKOHARAM
Boko Haram jihadists kill 14 in western Chad: government
N’DJAMENA, Dec 18, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – Fourteen people were killed and 13 were
missing after Boko Haram jihadists attacked a fishing village in western Chad
on Tuesday, government officials said.
“There were 14 dead, five wounded and 13 missing in the attack” near the
village of Kaiga on the shores of Lake Chad, Imouya Souabebe, the prefect of
the region, told AFP on Wednesday.
Kaiga lies in marshland in a remote, sprawling region where the borders of
four countries — Cameroon, Chad, Nigeria and Nigeria — meet.
The village is about 60 kilometres (35 miles) from the border with
northeast Nigeria, the springboard for Boko Haram raids and kidnappings in
neighbouring countries.
“We know that there are always Boko Haram elements moving around the
(border) area, so they are behind this attack,” Souabebe said.
“The attackers first came in a small group and then brought in
reinforcements to attack the fishermen.”
The region’s governor, Noki Charfadine, gave a toll of at least nine dead.
He said the attack had taken place in a “red zone, where fishing is
forbidden.”
Boko Haram launched its armed insurgency in northeastern Nigeria — a
campaign that has killed 35,000 people and caused around two million to flee
their homes.
The spread of violence to Chad, Cameroon and Niger has prompted the
formation of a regional military coalition to fight the jihadists.
BSS/AFP/FI/ 1919 hrs