A convoy carrying Nigeria's chief of army staff has been ambushed by suspected Boko Haram militants. The attack came hours before UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon arrived in Abuja to discuss ways to combat extremism.
The Nigerian army said the convoy came under attack on Sunday during a tour of towns in troubled Borno state. Among those traveling in the convoy was Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai who was appointed as the new chief of army staff in July.
One Nigerian soldier died and 10 militants were killed during the attack. Another five militants were also arrested.
"The leading column was ambushed by suspected Boko Haram terrorists at Faljari village between Mafa and Dikwa," army spokesman Colonel Sani Usman said.
Increasing violence
Since Muhammadu Buhari came to power in May, Borno and two neighboring states in Nigeria's northeastern heartland have seen a significant increase in attacks by Islamist militant group Boko Haram.
A number of deadly ambushes carried out across Nigeria's borders and suicide bombings in Nigeria, Cameroon and Chad have also been reported in recent weeks.
More than 1,000 people have been killed in the renewed violence, over the last three months alone. The attacks have proved to be a great setback to the four-country offensive which was launched in February to combat the Islamists.
The taskforce - which includes military from Chad, Cameroon, Nigeria and Niger - has won a number of victories against the jihadi group in recent months and successfully pushed them back from all but one of their strongholds.
Four-year memorial
The ambush on Sunday came hours before United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived in Nigeria to commemorate the Boko Haram bombing of the UN's Nigeria headquarters. The UN leader will lay a wreath on Monday to remember the 21 victims who died in the car bombing in Abuja on August 26, 2011.
During his visit, Ban will also meet with Nigeria's newly-elected president. According to the UN, the leaders are expected to focus new attention on the 219 schoolgirls held by Boko Haram for almost 500 days. Discussions will cover ways to combat Islamist extremism, as well as human rights and climate change.
The UN Secretary-General is also scheduled to meet the Bring Back Our Girls group, which demands government action to free the abducted schoolgirls.
ksb/bw (AFP, AP, Reuters)
