A spokesperson for the Chadian government has confirmed that soldiers from Chad and
Niger on Tuesday drove Boko Haram Islamist militants from a northern Nigeria border town
which they have occupied since late last year.
Reuters reports that the town of Malam Fatori, which was seized by Boko Haram in November, had been the scene of fighting between coalition forces and the militants, and military sources falsely claimed to have retaken it in January.
Chad’s Communications Minister Hassan Sylla Bakari however said this time there was no doubt who controlled the town.
“We took Malam Fatori this evening. It’s an important victory in the fight against Boko Haram,” he told Reuters.
Niger military sources just across the border said air strikes began before an offensive by ground troops. They said the nearby village of Abadam was also liberated during the day and several Boko Haram fighters were killed in clashes there.
Nigerian and regional forces have pushed Boko Haram, which has killed thousands in its push to carve out a caliphate in northeastern Nigeria, from all but three of the 20 local government areas it occupied at the beginning of the year.
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