Witnesses say hundreds of Islamist gunmen tried to advance on north-eastern city, but security sources say situation is under control

This article is more than 5 years old

This article is more than 5 years old

At least 11 people were killed when Nigeria’s military repelled a Boko Haram attack on Maiduguri, a day after the country’s new president vowed to strengthen the defences of the key north-eastern city that was the birthplace of the militant group.

The Islamists’ assault on the Borno state capital saw rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) fired into homes, said witnesses and security sources. It came after Muhammadu Buhari’s inauguration, where he promised a new command-and-control centre to better coordinate the counter-insurgency effort in the region.

Shortly after midnight on Friday, residents in the Dala suburb south of the city woke to the sound of RPGs being fired in succession, said resident Modu Karumi, in an account supported by several others.

Witnesses said hundreds of Islamist gunmen were trying to advance on the city, which is now home to hundreds of thousands of people displaced by unrest in other parts of Borno state.

A military source said the shooting took place around the Damboa road near the small settlement of Mule, about six miles (10km) from Maiduguri, a city of 2 million people.

“A rocket launcher from Boko Haram hit a house around the Bulumkutu area … and killed five people. Our boys also picked up six corpses in different locations,” local militia member Mohammed Bunu said, adding that the militants tried to cross trenches dug around the city.

The attack follows twin bomb blasts early on Friday in Tashan Alade, a remote Borno town, which killed at least seven people.

Thousands have been killed and about 1.5 million displaced during Boko Haram’s six-year insurgency to carve out a state adhering to strict Islamic law in Nigeria, Africa’s biggest economy and top oil producer.

At the start of the year it controlled a swath of territory larger than Belgium in the north-east of the country. The group has since been pushed back with the help of offensives launched by troops from Chad and Niger while Cameroon has fought off militants along its borders.

The United States and Britain said on Friday they were ready to increase military cooperation with Nigeria to defeat Boko Haram.

Experts doubt that Boko Haram currently has the capacity to seize Maiduguri, but a major attack inside the city could still be disastrous for civilians.

How Nigeria turned a corner against Boko Haram Read more

And there are signs of the militants regrouping, particularly in the remote parts of eastern Borno, near the Cameroon border.

Buhari in his inaugural address on Friday vowed to intensify the fight against Boko Haram, notably by shifting operational command from the capital Abuja to Maiduguri.

The performance of Buhari’s predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, against the militants was heavily criticised, with the conflict killing more than 15,000 people since 2009 and forcing another 1.5 million from their homes.

Buhari, a former army general, insists the uprising can be defeated and has placed the Boko Haram effort at the top of his administration’s agenda.