100 Boko Haram Fighters Killed, 900 Hostages Freed in Cameroon Operation

Cameroon says its troops have killed 100 Boko Haram militants and freed 900 captives that were held by the Nigeria-based militant group.

The defense ministry says soldiers killed the militants and rescued the hostages during an operation last week along the Cameroon-Nigeria border.

There has been no independent confirmation of the claim.

Boko Haram

Boko Haram

  • Based in the northeastern city of Maiduguri
  • Self-proclaimed leader is Abubakar Shekau
  • Began in 2002 as a nonviolent Islamist splinter group
  • Launched uprising in 2009
  • Has killed tens of thousands since 2010
  • Boko Haram translates to "Western education is sinful"
  • Wants Nigeria to adopt strict Islamic law

Meanwhile, officials suspect Boko Haram was behind twin suicide attacks that killed at least four people in far northern Cameroon late Tuesday. The suicide bombers blew themselves up in Waza, a town near the Nigerian border.

Cameroon has been fighting Boko Haram since the Islamist militants began cross-border attacks in 2013.

The country is one of five contributing to a multi-national task force dedicated to fighting the group.

Boko Haram has killed more than 10,000 people since launching its campaign for a strict Muslim state in northern Nigeria six years ago.