Nigerian Army Chief Estimates Death Toll by Boko Haram at 3,000

The militant Islamist group Boko Haram, which is waging war against Christians in Nigeria, has been responsible for an estimated 3,000 deaths since 2009, according to an army chief -- the highest number of victims reported by an official source, ASSIST News Service reports. Boko Haram has been carrying out deadly attacks on churches and Christian communities as well as security forces and government targets in its campaign to establish an Islamic state in northern Nigeria. Barnabas Aid contacts in Nigeria have been logging attacks against Christians by Boko Haram and other Muslim groups over the last two years, including bombings, shootings, hackings, mass killings and the cold-blooded assassination of Christian families in their homes -- children, pregnant women and the elderly not being spared. "Barely a week goes by without a report of another anti-Christian attack in Nigeria, while the security forces seem at a loss as to how to bring Boko Haram under control," said a spokesperson for Barnabas Aid.