Soldiers from Chad killed 207 Boko Haram militants in fighting near a Nigerian town close to the border with Cameroon, Chad's army announced this week. The clashes occured near Gambaru, the scene of regular attacks by the Nigerian group in recent months.
Boko Haram has waged a five-year insurgency against the Nigerian government, launching scores of attacks that left 10,000 people dead in 2014. In recent weeks, the group has intensified its assaults on neighboring countries, in an effort to create a caliphate across the region.
In response, Cameroon, Niger, Benin and Chad have pledged to send soldiers as part of an 8,750-strong multinational force that aims to squash the violent movement. Earlier this month, Cameroon's army said it had detained 1,000 people suspected of having links to the group.
The African Union last month authorized the creation of the regional force and is lobbying for a United Nations Security Council mandate for the operation.
Al Jazeera and wire services
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