Fear of an imminent Boko Haram capture of Maiduguri, the Borno State capital looms large after the terrorists captured Bama, the second largest town in the state on Monday.
Nigerian military source deny this, but residents who fled the town says the Islamist group are lord over the town.
A think-thank has warned that Boko Haram’s “lightning territorial gains” could lead to Nigeria breaking up like Iraq, just as details emerged Thursday that residents of Banki, another town in the state, said that government troops abandoned their posts and took to their heels as the militants advanced on the small border town on Tuesday.
Most of the people remaining in the town were women and children, as many of the men had fled, one man who was hiding in the bush nearby told the BBC Hausa service.
The militants have not harmed anyone in the town, residents said.
The capture of Banki gives Boko Haram leverage as it tries to secure territory beyond north-eastern Nigeria, says BBC Nigeria analyst Jimeh Saleh.
Bama which it earlier captured is 1 hour drive from Maiduguri .