Nigeria and its neighbours have met to discuss the rapid advance of Boko Haram in the country’s northeast, amidst fears of increased regional instability.
Foreign ministers from Benin, Cameroon, Chad and Niger were joined by officials from the US, Britain, France, Canada, the African Union and the UN, in the one-day meeting, aimed at reviewing progress of earlier meetings, Nigerian officials said on Wednesday.
The meeting would examine "the extent of foreign assistance, including efforts by the Nigerian government, in the continued fight to … rout the Boko Haram insurgency", the Nigerian foreign ministry said, according to The Guardian.
On Tuesday, militants seized the town of Bama, the second biggest in Borno state.
It is feared that the militants’ next target is the state capital of Maiduguri, 70km northwest of the town.
Boko Haram last month declared an Islamic caliphate in the areas it controls.
See related articles below:
Boko Haram kills dozens in seized Nigerian towns (31 August 2014)
Nigerian soldiers flee into Cameroon after Boko Haram clashes (25 August 2014)
Boko Haram declares Islamic caliphate in captured town (24 August 2014)