Chad Strikes At Boko Haram After Raid Leaves 38 Civilians Dead In Nigeria

Chad's military announced it had carried out air strikes against Boko Haram bases in Nigeria in retaliation for twin suicide bombings in the Chadian capital N'Djamena this week that killed at least 38 people.
The air raids caused heavy human and material damage to six of the Islamist militants' bases, the military said late on Wednesday (Thursday NZT), without providing further details.
A few hours after Chad's announcement, Boko Haram militants attacked two villages in neighbouring Niger's southern region of Diffa, killing 38 civilians, most of them women and children, and burning over 100 homes, Niger's government said.

The attackers drove into the villages in the Gueskerou area, along the banks of the Komadugu River which separates Niger and Nigeria, in cars and on motorbikes and shot residents before setting fire to the thatched houses where others were hiding.
"In all, at least 30 were killed. Some of them died when the houses were set alight," said one of the security officials. He said he expected the death toll to rise as a number of survivors had suffered serious burns.
By mounting two major attacks outside its northern Nigerian stronghold over a few days, Boko Haram has demonstrated its ability to strike back in defiance of the coalition of regional armies seeking to stamp them out.
Chad has been a driving force behind the regional campaign, which has inflicted a series of defeats on Boko Haram since January.
Monday's simultaneous suicide attacks on a police headquarters and a training school in N'Djamena were the first of their kind in Chad.
Authorities in Chad have said four Boko Haram fighters were among the dead and at least five suspects have been detained in connection with the attacks, but no one has claimed responsibility for the bombings.
"Our defence and security forces will hunt down without mercy these terrorists without faith or law, so that spilling the blood of Chadians will not go unpunished," said Wednesday's written statement by army spokesman Colonel Azem Bermendoa.
Chad has announced measures including a ban on head-to-toe burqas and turbans to tighten security in the capital, home to the headquarters of a 3,000-strong French military mission.
A Reuters correspondent in N'Djamena said he had not seen any women wearing burqas on the streets since Wednesday's announcement. However, authorities had not yet followed through on a pledge to remove burqas from sale in the market.