Suspected Boko Haram Islamists
on Thursday opened fire in a church in Nigeria’s
restive northeast, killing the pastor and his two
children before setting fire to the building and
fleeing, the military said. Boko Haram, which has said it is fighting to
create an Islamic state in mainly Muslim
northern Nigeria, has repeatedly attacked
churches in its four-year insurgency. “Unknown gunmen suspected to be Boko
Haram terrorists attacked” the church in Yobe
state early on Thursday, area military
spokesman Eli Lazarus said in a statement. “During the attack, a pastor and his two
children were killed,” he said. The church “and two other houses in the
community were burnt by the gunmen before
fleeing the scene of the incident,” the
statement further said. The killings occurred in the town of Dorawa,
some 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the site of
a brutal school attack in July that saw dozens
of students slaughtered. Yobe was one of three northeastern states
placed under a state of emergency in mid-May
as the military launched a major offensive
aimed at crushing Boko Haram. Yobe has seen less violence than neighbouring
Borno state, Boko Haram’s base, but the
insurgents have carried out major attacks
there. Attacks on churches, including suicide
bombings, were once a near weekly occurence
but have declined in recent months. Since the emergency measures were imposed
Boko Haram has largely targeted civilians as
well as vigilante groups which have formed to
help the military. The latest violence came after the emergence
of a new video, in which a man who resembles
Boko Haram’s leader mocked reports of his
possible death. Abubakar Shekau, declared a global terrorist by
the United States, taunted the regional military
spokesman who said he “may have been”
fatally wounded in a clash on June 30. While Shekau’s whereabouts and condition are
unknown, the violence has continued, casting
doubt on the success of the four-month-old
military offensive. The Boko Haram conflict was earlier this year
estimated to have killed more than 3,600
people, including deaths caused by the security
forces. The current toll is likely much higher.
on Thursday opened fire in a church in Nigeria’s
restive northeast, killing the pastor and his two
children before setting fire to the building and
fleeing, the military said. Boko Haram, which has said it is fighting to
create an Islamic state in mainly Muslim
northern Nigeria, has repeatedly attacked
churches in its four-year insurgency. “Unknown gunmen suspected to be Boko
Haram terrorists attacked” the church in Yobe
state early on Thursday, area military
spokesman Eli Lazarus said in a statement. “During the attack, a pastor and his two
children were killed,” he said. The church “and two other houses in the
community were burnt by the gunmen before
fleeing the scene of the incident,” the
statement further said. The killings occurred in the town of Dorawa,
some 30 kilometres (18 miles) from the site of
a brutal school attack in July that saw dozens
of students slaughtered. Yobe was one of three northeastern states
placed under a state of emergency in mid-May
as the military launched a major offensive
aimed at crushing Boko Haram. Yobe has seen less violence than neighbouring
Borno state, Boko Haram’s base, but the
insurgents have carried out major attacks
there. Attacks on churches, including suicide
bombings, were once a near weekly occurence
but have declined in recent months. Since the emergency measures were imposed
Boko Haram has largely targeted civilians as
well as vigilante groups which have formed to
help the military. The latest violence came after the emergence
of a new video, in which a man who resembles
Boko Haram’s leader mocked reports of his
possible death. Abubakar Shekau, declared a global terrorist by
the United States, taunted the regional military
spokesman who said he “may have been”
fatally wounded in a clash on June 30. While Shekau’s whereabouts and condition are
unknown, the violence has continued, casting
doubt on the success of the four-month-old
military offensive. The Boko Haram conflict was earlier this year
estimated to have killed more than 3,600
people, including deaths caused by the security
forces. The current toll is likely much higher.
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