Turkey condemns Boko Haram attack in Nigeria

By Firdevs Bulut

ANKARA (AA) - Turkey's Foreign Ministry on Wednesday condemned the terrorist attack by Boko Haram in Nigeria.

"We are saddened by the terrorist attacks that took place in Borno and Yobe States of Nigeria, on May 19, 2020, claiming many lives and leaving several injured.

We condemn these heinous terrorist attacks. We wish Allah’s mercy upon those who lost their lives, speedy recovery to the injured and offer our sincere condolences to the people and Government of Nigeria," said a statement on the ministry's website.

Boko Haram launched a bloody insurgency in 2009 in northeastern Nigeria but later spread its atrocities to neighboring Niger, Chad and Cameroon, prompting a military response.

More than 30,000 people have been killed and nearly 3 million displaced in a decade of Boko Haram's terrorist activities in Nigeria, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Violence committed by Boko Haram has affected some 26 million people in the Lake Chad region and displaced 2.6 million others, according to the UN Refugee Agency.