Nigerian troops kill 20 suspects of militant Islamists 

Nigerian troops have killed 20 suspected members of the militant Islamist group Boko Haram in the north-east of the country.

The army says one government soldier also died in a shootout in the town of Maiduguri.

Boko Haram recently carried out numerous raids on churches and other targets in Nigeria.

The group wants to establish Islamic law in the country, whose large Christian and animist population mainly live in the south.

The army said, it acted on intelligence that a number of Boko Haram members were holding a gathering at a location in Maiduguri.

Most of Boko Haram attacks have been staged in the largely Muslim north, but the group has also targeted churches in central Nigeria.

GBC