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Air Strikes Hit Nigeria's Militant Camps




Nigerian forces have launched air strikes against suspected Islamist militant camps in the country's northeast.

A military spokesman said all known militant camps in three northeastern states are being attacked and that several camps in Borno state have been destroyed or taken over.

The spokesman, Brigadier General Chris Olukolade, said earlier Friday that the attacks killed an undetermined number of insurgents.

President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency in Borno and the neighboring states of Yobe and Adamawa on Tuesday, following a sharp rise in attacks by the militant group Boko Haram.



Mr. Jonathan deployed extra troops to the region and authorized security forces to take "all necessary actions" against the militants.

Boko Haram has battled the government since 2009 in an effort to impose Islamic law on majority-Muslim northern Nigeria.

In a video this week, the group's purported leader claimed responsibility for recent attacks in the towns of Baga and Bama and said militants would begin kidnapping women and children as part of their strategy.

More than 3,000 people have been killed in Boko Haram-related violence, including hundreds killed in government counter-insurgency operations.
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