TheCable

The Cameroon air force has launched its first air strikes against the Boko Haram sect, according to BBC.

Didier Badjeck, a lieutenant colonel and army spokesman, said Paul Biya, the president of Cameroon, ordered air operation after the militant group over-ran a military base and attacked five villages.

“The head of state ordered the air force to carry out strikes. With the bombardment, the fighters were forced to decamp from Achigachia,” Badjeck told Reuters.

The latest fighting was the most intense, lasting for three days along several fronts.

About 1,000 militants attacked five villages, including Amchide, seizing the nearby Achigachia military base.

Last week, Cameroon said it had dismantled a Boko Haram training camp on its territory and seized 84 children who were being trained there.

One hundred members of the sect were killed on Friday, while 200 were also arrested by Cameroonian forces during an operation at Doble, a community in the far-north region of the country bordering Nigeria.

The Cameroonian government has strengthened its military might this year by sending more troops in the north to fight against the militants.

Based on its proximity to Nigeria, Cameroon has been affected by the insurgency ravaging Nigeria.