MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — Nigerian soldiers, backed by air support, repelled an attack Wednesday by suspected Islamic militants on a military base in the northeast of the country, killing at least 60 fighters, the army said.
The militants, suspected to be members of Boko Haram or the Islamic State West Africa Province, supported by multiple armed drones, attacked the base in Mallam Fatori, in the state of Borno, near the border with Niger, at around 12:50 a.m., army spokesperson Sani Uba said in a statement.
Uba said the troops had anticipated the assault and repelled it with ground ?fire and ?air support, killing 60 fighters, including some “notorious commanders.” The Associated Press could not independently verify the claims.
The attack comes after three suspected suicide bombings Monday killed at least 23 people and wounded 108 others in Borno’s capital Maiduguri. No group claimed responsibility for the attacks, but suspicion quickly fell on the Boko Haram jihadi group, which in 2009 launched an insurgency in northeastern Nigeria to enforce their radical interpretation of Sharia, or Islamic law.
Boko Haram has since become stronger, with thousands of fighters and different factions, including the Islamic State West Africa Province, which is backed by the Islamic State group.
The crisis has overstretched the Nigerian military, which also battles other security crises across the conflict-battered north.
More than 40,000 people in Nigeria have been killed since Boko Haram’s insurgency began, according to data from the United Nations. Analysts say not enough is being done by the government to protect its citizens.
The U.S. sent troops last month to the West African nation to help advise its military on the fight against insecurity.
Dyepkazah Shibayan in Abuja, Nigeria contributed to this report.