Clashes erupt between regional troops, Boko Haram

Nigeria’s military on Wednesday said regional troops had recaptured a town on the shores of Lake Chad from Boko Haram, but the terrorists claimed to have inflicted heavy casualties.
Army spokesman Sani Usman said its troops and counterparts from the Multi-National Joint Task Force (MNJTF) had “captured Malam Fatori... after a fierce battle” backed by air support. But “the terrorists reinforced around (the) border with Niger... while the troops were consolidating on this success,” he added in an e-mailed statement.
Several Boko Haram fighters were killed, said Usman, without specifying a number.
Malam Fatori, in Borno state, was liberated in March last year as part of a regional counter-offensive against the Militants, who had captured swathes of territory in northeast Nigeria in 2014. But fighters from Boko Haram, which is affiliated to Daesh terrorist group and now calls itself Islamic State West Africa Province, reoccupied the town after troops left.
The MNJTF is made up of soldiers from Nigeria, Cameroon, Chad, Niger and Benin.
Northern Borno state, which is near the border with Niger, is inaccessible because of insecurity, with Boko Haram pushed into areas in and around Lake Chad by the military offensive.
There have been an increasing number of attacks in southeast Niger in recent weeks, an indication the rebels have re-grouped and switched focus.

Source: Arab News