Boko Haram militants 'seize Nigerian town of Chibok

Boko Haram militants have seized the north-eastern Nigerian town of Chibok, from where they kidnapped more than 200 schoolgirls in April.
Militants attacked and took control of the town,in Borno state, on Thursday evening, residents
who escaped told the BBC.
Boko Haram has repeatedly targeted villages
around Chibok over recent months.
The group says it is fighting to create an Islamic
state in Nigeria.
The schoolgirl kidnappings in Chibok caused
worldwide outrage and sparked a social media
campaign.
Separately on Friday, a suicide attack at a petrol
station in the northern city of Kano left at least
six people dead, police said.
Changed tactics
A senator for Borno state, Ali Ndume, told the
BBC Hausa service that security forces posted in
Chibok, a relatively small, mainly Christian town,
ran away when the insurgents attacked.
Residents told the Sahara Reporters news
website that the militants headed to the centre
of Chibok and declared that they were taking it
over as part of their caliphate.
Who are Boko Haram?
Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau has
declared a caliphate in areas he controls
Founded in 2002
Initially focused on opposing Western
education - Boko Haram means "Western
education is forbidden " in the Hausa
language
Launched military operations in 2009 to
create Islamic state
Thousands killed, mostly in north-eastern
Nigeria - also attacked police and UN
headquarters in capital, Abuja
Some three million people affected
Declared terrorist group by US in 2013
Who are the militants?
Musa Ali, a vigilante who tried to defend Chibok,
said the militants had attacked in two groups.
"You couldn't count them because there were so
many," he said.
"All the security and the soldiers, they ran away
and left us on our own. They didn't shoot at
them, they just ran. All the ammunition we had
was finished, so there was no way we could
attempt to hold the area."
Since the kidnapping of the girls, people have
complained that the area was not well protected
and many residents of Chibok had already moved
to safer parts of the country, fearing another
attack.
The BBC's Will Ross in Nigeria says the military
has repeatedly failed to defend towns and
villages in the north-east, allowing Boko Haram
to steadily expand the area it controls.
The crisis in Nigeria is deepening every week,
but politicians appear more focused on next
year's elections, our correspondent says.
Emman Usman Shehu, an activist with the Bring
Back Our Girls campaign, said the authorities
should have realised that Chibok would be a
symbolic target for the insurgents.
"It should have been obvious to everyone that
Boko Haram was going to target Chibok. It shows
a lack of compassion, a lack of empathy and a
lack of concern," he told AFP news agency.
Boko Haram has changed tactics in recent
months by holding on to territory rather than
using hit-and-run attacks that have left
thousands dead.
Last month, the group dismissed the
government's claims to have agreed a ceasefire.
The government had said the ceasefire would set
the stage for the release of the Chibok
schoolgirls.
Chibok's seizure comes a day after a government
helicopter came down in Yola, in north-east
Adamawa State - the second military helicopter
to go down in the area in a week.
Also on Thursday, officials and residents said the
army had managed to recapture the town of
Mubi, which was the biggest town under Boko
Haram's control.