Islamist insurgents have shot dead at least 40 students who were sleeping in their college dormitory in north-east Nigeria.

All of the dead are said to have been students of the College of Agriculture in the town of Gujba, some 30 kilometres from Damaturu, the capital of Yobe state.

Local military blamed the early morning attack on the militant terrorist organisation Boko Haram, whose name loosely translates to "Western education is forbidden" and is notorious for slaughtering students.

Yobe military spokesman Lazarus Eli said: "Boko Haram terrorists who went into the school and opened fire on students."

An official at the Damaturu Specialist Hospital, who requested anonymity, said 40 bodies, all of whom appeared to be of university student age, had been received from Gujba so far.

Four others were being treated for gunshot wounds, he said.

Hundreds of people gathered at the hospital trying to learn if their family members were among the victims, the hospital official added.

Boko Haram's war against students

Yobe has seen a spate of attacks on schools and universities, all blamed on Boko Haram, an extremist group that has killed hundreds in its four-year insurgency.

What is Boko Haram? Boko Haram, which means "Western education is sinful", is loosely modelled on the Taliban movement in Afghanistan.

Boko Haram, which means "Western education is sinful", is loosely modelled on the Taliban movement in Afghanistan. The group considers all who do not follow its strict ideology as infidels, whether they are Christian or Muslim.

The group considers all who do not follow its strict ideology as infidels, whether they are Christian or Muslim. It demands the adoption of Sharia law in all of Nigeria. Read more

In July in the town of Mamudo, Islamists threw explosives and sprayed gunfire into dormitories in the middle of the night, killing 41 students.

Presumed Boko Haram gunmen shot dead seven secondary school students and two teachers in Damaturu in June.

The military has described the recent school attacks as a sign of desperation by the Islamists, claiming they only have the capacity to hit soft targets.

The defence ministry has said that an offensive launched against Boko Haram in mid-May has decimated the group and scattered their fighters across remote parts of the north-east, the insurgents' traditional stronghold.

While many of the recent attacks have occurred in more remote areas, often targeting defenceless civilians, the unchecked killing has cast doubt on the success of the military's campaign.

Scores have been killed this month, including in the north-eastern town of Benisheik in Borno state, where at least 142 people were slaughtered by presumed Boko Haram fighters who came disguised as soldiers, set up checkpoints and fired on motorists and bystanders.

Some of the recent violence has targeted vigilante groups which have formed to help the military.

North-east Nigeria under state of emergency

The north-east remains under a state of emergency imposed on May 14 because of terrorist attacks.

The phone network has been switched off in much of the region since the emergency measures were declared, a move the military said would help prevent the Islamists from coordinating attacks.

Some have suggested that the lack of phone service has prevented civilians from sounding the alarm during attacks.

While the phones remained down in Gujba, calls to Damaturu were going through on Sunday.

Boko Haram has said it is fighting to create an Islamic state in Nigeria's mainly Muslim north, but the group is believed to be made up of different factions with varying aims.

The group has attacked churches, mosques, newspaper offices, the security forces, politicians and a United Nations building, among other targets.

A toll earlier this year said the conflict is estimated to have cost more than 3,600 lives, including killings by the security forces. The current figure is likely much higher.

Nigeria is Africa's most populous country and top oil producer, roughly divided between a mainly Muslim north and predominately Christian south.

AFP