Over 200 Boko Haram fighters surrender to Nigerian troops: official

More than 200 Boko Haram fighters on Friday surrendered to Nigerian troops in Banki area of the northeastern state of Borno, a strategic town which was retaken from the terrorists on Thursday.

Several Boko Haram fighters who proved stubborn were killed in the military offensive which caused most of the terrorists to lay down their arms in the town noted for fishing, Col. Sani Kukasheka Usman, spokesman of the Nigerian army, told Xinhua.

Major economic and trading activities between Nigeria, Cameroon and Central African countries takes place in Banki town.

The army spokesman said further details on how the terror group members surrendered to the Nigerian troops will be made available to the media later.

On Thursday, in an operation supported by Cameroonian troops and the Nigerian air force, seven Boko Haram camps were destroyed and more than a dozen improvised explosive devices found in and near the town detonated in controlled explosions.

The army, in an effort to end the six-year Boko Haram insurgency, is advancing on the Sambisa forest -- the terror group's stronghold.

It claims to have routed the insurgents in different towns and communities in the northern states of Borno, Yobe and Adamawa in the last few weeks.

Boko Haram, whose name means "Western education is forbidden", has killed over 13,000 people and abducted hundreds since starting its operations in 2009. Endit