Witnesses: 100s of bodies in town held by Boko Haram

Maiduguri - Witnesses say hundreds of bodies of alleged civilian victims of Boko Haram have been found in a recaptured Nigerian border town.

Local government spokesperson Babagana Mustapha says a committee sent to Damasak at the weekend found the town littered with bodies of women, children and some adult men.

He says the men appear to be Boko Haram fighters killed when troops from Niger and Chad reclaimed the town from Islamic extremists in March.

Mustapha told reporters on Monday that Chadian forces told him hundreds more bodies of insurgents remain in surrounding bush. Damasak is near the border with Niger and about 180km northwest of Maiduguri, the Borno state capital.

Multinational forces have driven Boko Haram from most north-eastern towns in an offensive begun at the end of January.