Borno State Governor Calls For More Troops To Fight Boko Haram

The governor of the north-eastern Nigerian state of Borno has called for more troops to be deployed to combat Boko Haram Islamist militants.

Kashim Shettima was speaking during a visit to the town of Konduga, where 39 died in an attack on Tuesday.

A mosque and more than 1,000 homes were also razed to the ground, residents said.

Boko Haram has been conducting a four-year campaign of violence to push for Islamic rule in northern Nigeria.

Last May, President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency in Borno and the neighbouring states of Adamawa and Yobe in a bid to stop their insurgency.

But the BBC's Will Ross in Nigeria says the military is once again facing criticism for not doing more to protect the people of the north-east and failing to detect and attack another convoy of Boko Haram militants.

NigerianEye