11 dead as Nigerian troops repel suicide bombers

Rescued workers collects bodies following an attack by suicide bombers at the outskirts of Maiduguri, Nigeria, Friday, February 17, 2017. Witnesses and soldiers say a number of people have been killed as Nigerian troops battled Boko Haram suicide bombers and fighters to repel an attack on the outskirts of northeastern Maiduguri city. PHOTO: AP

Battling multiple bombers strapped with suicide vests, Nigerian troops and civilian self-defense fighters repelled the fiercest Boko Haram extremist attack in months on the key northeastern city of Maiduguri yesterday.

Nine bombers and two civilians were killed, according to witnesses, soldiers and police.
The city is the birthplace of the Islamic insurgency and the headquarters of the military campaign to halt it.