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| Boko Haram is waging an insurgency to create an Islamic state in Nigeria |
Nigeria and three other states have pledged to speed up the
creation of a 2,800-strong regional force to tackle militant Islamist group
Boko Haram. Defence ministers of Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad and Niger said they
would each contribute 700 troops to the force.
Niger's Defence Minister Karidio Mahamadou said they were
determined to "eradicate this curse". Boko Haram's insurgency is
focused on Nigeria, but it has carried out some cross-border raids.
It was suspected of blowing up the Ngala bridge, which lies
on a key transport link between north-eastern Nigeria and Cameroon, yesterday. Cars
and Lorries loaded with goods are stranded on the highway, residents told the
BBC.
The regional defence ministers met in Niger's capital,
Niamey, on Wednesday, to hold further discussions on the growing threat posed
by Boko Haram. In May, the four countries, whose borders meet at Lake Chad,
agreed to share intelligence and coordinate border security.
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| Nigeria's military has been battling to curb the insurgency |
Efforts to step up regional co-operation gained momentum
after Boko Haram caused an international outcry by abducting more than 200
girls from a boarding school in north-eastern Nigeria. The girls are said to be
held in the vast Sambisa forest, along Nigeria's border with Cameroon.
Boko Haram has carried out a spate of abductions in Cameroon
- including that of tourists and priests. Unconfirmed reports say the group has
also recruited fighters from Chad and Niger. Yesterday, at least 40 people were
killed when two bombs exploded in the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna. There was
an attempted assassination on the General Mohammed Buhari.
Boko Haram has not commented, but it is suspected to have
carried out the attacks. It launched an insurgency in 2009 to create an Islamic
state in Nigeria.
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| Map showing where militant groups are based |
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