Nigerian defense authorities say Boko Haram's latest video "unreal"

Defense authorities in Nigeria on Thursday dismissed Boko Haram's latest video as "unreal," urging citizens of the West African nation to disregard it.

In a statement made available to Xinhua, defense spokesman, Rabe Abubakar described the video clip as "diversionary and a desperate attempt by the dying Boko Haram to remain relevant."

The Boko Haram video, which has gone viral on the internet since Tuesday, showed an assemblage of worshippers in the background as a man who posed as acting leader of the group dished out threats to the Nigerian government.

The defense statement cast aspersion to the credibility of the video, saying it was a replica of a video released by the group in 2014.

It said the congregants in the video were "photoshopped" and, therefore, should be disregarded.

"The video clip is a complete show of weakness and sign that the end is near for the insurgents, hence it does not in any way pose a threat to us," the statement said.

Nigeria's northeast region has been a stronghold of the extremist group Boko Haram and has been frequently raided in the past six years.

In past months, the Nigerian government has launched several military operations to eliminate the terrorist threat. Endit