Kano (Nigeria) (AFP) - Boko Haram fighters launched an attack on northeast Nigeria's largest city Maiduguri on Wednesday but were repelled by Nigerian troops after intense clashes, residents and the army said.
Dozens of militants armed with heavy guns and rocket-propelled grenades stormed the northern outskirts of the city near Giwa military base, shooting and firing explosives indiscriminately, local witnesses told AFP.
The army said in a statement its soldiers had fought off "a band of terrorists" and that two bombs carried by female suicide bombers were detonated ahead of the attack.
There was no immediate information on any casualties.
The assault was the first on Maiduguri after a three-month lull following sweeping offensives on Boko Haram strongholds by a regional coalition of troops from Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon.
"They came in through the Kayamla area around 6:30 pm (1730 GMT) when residents were preparing for evening prayers, firing in all directions and hurling bombs," said local resident Ibrahim Sidi.
"Soldiers from Giwa barracks deployed and intercepted them just on the outskirts of the city and engaged them in a fight that lasted for over 40 minutes," he said.
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