Nigeria President Declares State of Emergency

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has declared a “state of emergency” tuesday in three states after the violent attacks by Islamist armed groups.

The state of emergency applies to the states of Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa in Nigeria.

Jonathan said terrorists groups pose a serious threat to Nigeria’s “unity and territorial integrity”.

He has also ordered more troops to be “immediately” deployed to the northeastern Nigerian states.

Jonathan noted some parts of the northern Borno state have already been taken.

The Islamist group aims to overthrow the Nigerian government and to impose Islamic law in northern Nigeria.

Militants from the group Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is forbidden”, have been accountable for the deaths in Nigeria since 2010.

The President said the attacks on government buildings, killings and violence on officials and civilians “amount to a declaration of war”. He also vowed to “put an end” to the insurgents and terrorists.

Source: cnn.com, aljazeera.com, bbc.co.uk