Boko Haram attacks soldiers in Niger, wounds five

Niamey - Boko Haram militants clashed on
Friday with soldiers in Niger, who were
reinforcing border positions to fend off the
insurgency that is spreading from Nigeria
into neighbouring states, officials in Niger
said. At least five local soldiers were wounded,
they said. The fighting is taking place in the
southeastern region of Diffa where Chad has
sent hundreds of troops to help Niger take
on Boko Haram at its long, porous border. Violence erupted when Boko Haram fighters,
who have seized swathes of territory in
Nigeria, attacked the Niger town of Bosso
from the neighbouring Nigerian town Malam
Fatori, a military source said. Also read: The origins of Boko Haram Niger and Chadian troops were holding their
positions in the town, he said. A second source told Reuters by telephone,
"There is heavy weapons fire from both
sides. The fighting is intense and we have at
least five injured in our ranks." Boko Haram, which wants to set up an
Islamic emirate in northern Nigeria, has
emerged has the worst threat to Nigeria
security as the nation, Africa's top oil
producer and biggest economy, heads to a
presidential election on Feb. 14. The militants are also increasingly
threatening neighbouring Chad, Niger and
Cameroon, prompting regional leaders to
come up with a joint plan to defeat them. Chad has deployed some 2,500 soldiers to
neighbouring Cameroon and Niger as part of
this effort. Niger's parliament is due to vote
on Monday on a proposal by the government
to send its troops into Nigeria to fight Boko
Haram.