Nigerian army reopens key road closed over Boko Haram attacks
Date 2015/7/20 21:24:47 | Topic: Nigeria
|  The Nigerian military has reopened a major road in the country’s northeast after it was closed more than one year ago for the clearance of mines planted by Boko Haram militants.
On Sunday, army spokesman, Colonel Sani Usman, said a road between Damaturu, the capital of Yobe, and the Biu commercial center in Borno State, had been reopened.
The road was closed so that special forces, police, and local volunteers involved in the war against Boko Haram militants could clear the area of mines planted by the terrorists.
Usman said four improvised explosive devices "planted by suspected Boko Haram terrorists were discovered and successfully detonated" during the demining operation.
The operation comes two days after bombing attacks in Damaturu killed 13 people on July 17, as they prepared to take part in Eid al-Fitr celebrations, marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.
The government also said it had relaxed a curfew and lifted a ban on the movement of vehicles, imposed in the state capital, Maiduguri, two days ago, aimed at preventing attacks by militants.
The northeastern Nigerian states of Yobe, Borno, and Adamawa have been witnessing deadly attacks by Boko Haram Takfiri terrorists that have claimed the lives of 15,000 people since 2009. About 1.5 million have been also displaced.
The Boko Haram militants have pledged allegiance to the ISIL Takfiri group, which is primarily operating and carrying out terrorist attacks inside Iraq and Syria.
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