Gunfire, explosion heard as extremists attack Nigerian business schoolMay 8, 2015 - 12:51 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Gunfire and an explosion came from a business school in northeast Nigeria on Friday, May 8, as it was attacked by suspected Boko Haram extremists, the Associated Press reports. The Associated Press says its reporter watched soldiers and police officers rush to the College of Administrative and Business Studies in Potiskum, where they have engaged the attackers in a firefight. Potiskum is the biggest town in Yobe state. It was too early to know if there are casualties. The gunmen arrived around 8 a.m. (0700 GMT) and opened fire at the school gate, witnesses said. Security guards ran away and it was not immediately clear if they had guns. The attackers kept shooting as they jumped the school wall and detonated a bomb at the student dorm, according to witnesses who spoke on condition of anonymity because they fear reprisals. They said they believed most students were already in classrooms. It is the first school attack reported since a 3-month-old multinational offensive has driven Boko Haram out of towns and villages seized last year. Boko Haram means "Western education is sinful." Troops from neighboring countries joined the fight as Nigeria's home-grown Islamic extremist group began attacking across borders. Nigeria's military says the main fighting force of Boko Haram has fled to strongholds in the vast Sambisa Forest, where Nigerian troops this month rescued nearly 700 girls and women held in captivity by the insurgents and destroyed about 20 camps. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | The Power of One Dram to benefit Road of Life charity The companies inform that the May beneficiary of The Power of One Dram is the “Road of Life” charitable organization. Ucom General Director gives lecture at French University in Armenia The General Director of Ucom Ralph Yirikian delivered a lecture at the French University of Armenia. Kazakhstan welcomes Yerevan, Baku’s agreement to meet in Almaty Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has welcomed the agreement of Baku and Yerevan to hold negotiations in Almaty. Armenia offers to temporarily host, preserve Gaza manuscripts The Armenian Foreign Minister has said Yerevan is ready to help preserve manuscripts from the conflict zone in Gaza. |