Nigeria's military 'kills 35 suspected Boko Haram members'

Lagos, Nigeria (PANA) - The military Joint Task Force (JTF) battling the Islamic sect Boko Haram in northern Nigeria said on Monday it killed 35 suspected members of the sect after a 24-hour gun battle in Damaturu, capital of Yobe state.

JTF spokesperson in Yobe, Lazarus Eli, said the shootout occurred during a raid to smoke out “terrorist elements around Kandahar, Pawari and Pawari Cemetery areas'' of the city.

Mr. Eli said two JTF members sustained injuries from the gun fight, and that various weapons and ammunition were recovered during the raid.

Boko Haram has been active in Yobe, forcing the state authorities to impose a 24-hour curfew on the capital city while the military carries out its operations aimed at ending the terrorist acts there.

The killing is the latest in a string of successes recorded by the military against Boko Haram in recent times, coming on the heels of the killing of two top commanders of the sect each in Maiduguri and Kano states, both in the north.

On Sunday, a suspected Boko Haram suicide bomber attacked a Catholic church in the eponymous capital of Bauchi state, killing three persons and injuring 46.
-0- PANA SEG/MA 24Sept2012