RNA - Community leaders and residents of Kekenu, Budur, Yoyo and Mile 90 villages, located some 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of the town of Baga in the northeastern Nigerian state of Borno, confirmed the exodus on Tuesday.
Head of Borno State fishermen's union, Abubakar Gamandi, said residents from the villages told him that Boko Haram militants had "asked people to leave -- or else."
Ma'agana Butari, who fled Baga to the Borno State capital, Maiduguri, on Monday, told reporters, "When we came to Mile 90, we found it almost empty with some remaining residents staying behind to pick up personal belongings."
"We also found Budur, Kekenu and Yoyo deserted and we caught up with some of the residents moving towards Monguno," she added.
Boko Haram militants attacked Baga, which is located close to Nigeria’s border with Chad, on January 3, seizing the town and neighboring villages.
According to residents, hundreds of people are feared to have been killed although there is no official confirmation of the toll as the town is in control of the Takfiri militants.
On January 9, Amnesty International said Boko Haram militants had killed as many as 2,000 people in their attack on Nigerian city of Baga in Borno State.
Boko Haram, whose name means “Western education is forbidden,” says its goal is to overthrow the Nigerian government.
The terrorist group has claimed responsibility for numerous deadly shooting attacks and bombings in various parts of Nigeria which have claimed the lives of thousands of people since 2009.
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