Boko Haram's campaign against the Nigerian
state caused yet more suffering on Wednesday when gunmen raided two
villages, killing at least 26 people.
One of the targets was only 20 miles from the town of Chibok in Borno state,
where 270 schoolgirls were abducted last month. The latest incidents came
within 24 hours of the bloodiest bomb attacks in Nigerian history, which
claimed 118 lives in the city of Jos on Tuesday.
The constant drumbeat of violence drove home the failure of Nigeria's security
forces to curb Boko Haram, a radical Islamist movement which has waged an
insurgency mainly in the northern states since 2002. Although Britain and
America are providing expert assistance focused on tracking down the missing
girls, commentators doubt whether this will help Nigeria's small and
underequipped army to develop the skills in counter-insurgency needed to
defeat Boko Haram.
The village of Alagarno was attacked in the early hours of yesterday morning.
Gunmen apparently looted homes before setting many ablaze. "We saw our
village up in flames as we hid in the bush waiting for the dawn; we lost
everything," said Apagu Maidaga, an eyewitness contacted by the
Associated Press news agency.
At least 17 people were killed in Alagarno, which lies in the heart of an area
ravaged by Boko Haram.
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