Nigeria: Boko Haram bomb-making plant raided

According to Nigerian officials, security forces have raided a suspected bomb making plant, killing at least nine alleged Islamist activists. The operation, undertaken in Okene district of Kogi state, followed information that the facility was being run by the notorious Boko Haram group. Two security officers were killed in crossfire.

The Islamist group Boko Haram has launched a number of deadly attacks across northern Nigeria since 2009. The raid on Sunday 1 April, took place further south in Kogi state, and involved helicopters and dozens of security officers.

A spokesman for the state governor Jacob Edi told AFP news agency that there “were some skirmishes between some hoodlums and the military”. Nigerian security officials said they believed the facility belonged to Boko Haram, and described the nine people killed as "terrorists".

Boko Haram aims to overthrow the national government and install an extreme form of Islamic law. In a bid to achieve this aim, the group has killed hundreds of civilians mainly in northern Nigeria.

Sources: BBC News, AFP, Reuters

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