* Security forces said on Monday Boko Haram spokesman killed
* Mobile phone masts recently sabotaged
* MTN says fibre optic cables cut, disrupting services
MAIDUGURI, Nigeria, Sept 18 (Reuters) – Suspected members of
the Boko Haram Islamist sect killed the attorney general of
Nigeria’s northeast state Borno overnight, the state’s justice
ministry said on Tuesday, a day after the sect’s spokesman was
reportedly killed in a shootout.
Boko Haram, which models itself on the Afghan Taliban, is
fighting to create an Islamic state in largely Muslim northern
Nigeria, a battle in which the sect has killed hundreds of
people in gun and bomb attacks. Its headquarters is in Borno.
Zanna Malam Gana was shot dead in his home town of Bama, in
Nigeria’s remote northeast, on the threshold of the Sahara
Desert, the justice ministry said in a statement to local
journalists. It said his burial would take place on Tuesday.
On Monday, a Nigerian security source said its forces had
killed Abu Qaqa, the main spokesman of the Boko Haram sect,
which has become the biggest threat to Nigeria’s security, as
well as another senior militant.
There has been no response from the sect on the claim.
Nigerian forces have claimed to have killed or captured him
before, only for the militant to issue a statement denying it.
Boko Haram traditionally targets authority figures or
security sources, although it started attacking mobile phone
installations across the northeast two weeks ago, saying phone
companies were helping authorities to track down its fighters.
Continued…
