NIGERIA
A Nagging Problem
Nigerian authorities continue to insist that Islamist militant group Boko Haram is on the brink of defeat, but the country suffered its largest terrorist strike of the year on Tuesday when a suicide bomber killed at least 50 people at a mosque in the northeastern town of Mubi.
No group has yet claimed authority for the attack, which brings the number killed in 2017 to at least 278, Reuters reported. Because a number of people also suffered serious injuries, the death toll could well increase, police said.
Boko Haram was pushed out of power in Adamawa state, where Mubi is located, in early 2015. And while the group still carries out terrorist strikes on mosques and markets, this was the first such attack in Mubi since government forces recaptured the town in in 2014.
In its wake, Aisha Yesufu, BringBackOurGirls, BBOG co-convener, blasted the government via Twitter for claiming the group was defeated.
Fighting to overthrow the government since 2009, Boko Haram has killed more than 20,000 and forced around 2 million people to flee their homes.
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