The number of fatalities resulting from attacks in Nigeria on 26 January has risen to at least 138.
Islamist terror group Boko Haram, officially labelled a ‘Foreign Terrorist Organisation’ by the US government in November last year, is suspected to have coordinated the violence.
‘Boko Haram’ translates as ‘Western education is sacrilege’. The group has ties to Al-Qaeda and is responsible for over 2,000 deaths in Nigeria since 2009. Its leadership has declared it aims to cleanse the country of Christians, eradicate Nigerian democracy and replace it with an Islamic state guided by Sharia law.
On Sunday, armed militants attacked a church in Adamawa State in the north-east of the country. They locked the doors before the end of the service and shot at the congregation, slitting the throats of those who tried to escape. They also detonated bombs before going on a four hour rampage, burning houses and taking hostages from the village.
Initial reports recorded 22 casualties. However, that number has now risen to 53, with dozens more wounded.
