Nairobi: At least 10 people were killed Friday in the first attack on Chadian territory by members of the Nigerian terror group Boko Haram, media reported.
The insurgents reached the town of Ngouboua, on the banks of Lake Chad, on board several canoes and killed at least 10 people, including the village chief, according to the Alwihda Info, a Chadian news portal.
The Chadian Army launched an operation to pursue the perpetrators of what was the first attack carried out by Boko Haram on Chadian territory amid a multinational operation led by Nigeria and Chad to expel the militants from their Nigerian strongholds.
Chad, which has one of the most powerful military contingents in the region, has carried out airstrikes against insurgent positions in the last days.
Chadian troops have regained control of the Nigerian town of Gamboru, killing 250 suspected members of Boko Haram in two days of heavy fighting on the border area between Nigeria and Cameroon.
In retaliation, Boko Haram stepped up their raids in Niger and Cameroon, killing at least 100 civilians in the Cameroonian town of Fotokol.
The African Union has authorised formation of a regional force of 7,500 soldiers to combat Boko Haram militants who are fighting to establish an Islamic state in northern Nigeria.
