Published : Tuesday, 10 February, 2015, Time : 12:00 AM, View Count : 26
NIAMEY, Feb 9 : Nigeria's Boko Haram fighters launched a new attack in neighbouring Niger on Monday, as parliament in Niamey was set to vote on joining a regional force against the Islamists. The insurgents raided a prison in the southeastern border town of Diffa, which they first attacked on Friday, but were repelled after a heavy exchange of fire, humanitarian sources said. "The attack failed. The assailants were quite easily pushed back," one source told AFP. Niger's parliament was expected on Monday to support a proposal to deploy troops inside Nigeria to help in the battle, along with soldiers from Chad, which has a battle-hardened army, and Cameroon. ?AFP