Boko Haram crisis: Militants attack key city of Maiduguri
President Jonathan made a surprise visit to Maiduguri on 15 January and visited again on Saturday
Fighters
from the Islamist militant group Boko Haram have launched an attack on
the key city of Maiduguri in north-eastern Nigeria.
Fierce fighting was reported on the outskirts. The military is carrying out air strikes, and a curfew is in place.Maiduguri is home to tens of thousands of people who have fled Boko Haram attacks and was visited on Saturday by President Goodluck Jonathan.
Another Boko Haram attack was reported in Monguno, north of Maiduguri.
Boko Haram, which means "Western education is forbidden" in the Hausa language, launched guerrilla operations in 2009 to create an Islamic state.
Thousands of people have been killed, mostly in north-eastern Nigeria.
Human rights group Amnesty International has warned that hundreds of thousands of civilians are now "at grave risk''.
Separately, US Secretary of State John Kerry has arrived in Lagos for talks with President Jonathan and the main opposition's presidential candidate, former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari.
'Pray for us' Residents of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, say they woke to sustained loud explosions and gunshots. Roads and business have been closed by security forces.
One resident on the outskirts of the town told the BBC that "hundreds of thousands of people" were fleeing and that the military were keeping a low profile.
"Only prayers will save us now, not the military," she said, pointing out that the town's defences now depended on civilian volunteers who had formed to repel the militant threat.
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