BOKO HARAM MILITANTS APPOINT NEW LEADER

The Nigerian-based Islamist militant group Boko Haram has a new leader, Chad’s President Idriss Deby says.

He did not say what had happened to Abubakar Shekau, but said he had been replaced by Mahamat Daoud – who has not been heard of before.

Mr Shekau has not featured in the group’s recent videos, leading to speculation that he has been killed.

Mr Deby, whose troops have been involved in battling Boko Haram, said Mr Daoud was open to dialogue.

The BBC’s Nigeria correspondent Will Ross says that last year, the Chadian leader was said to be brokering peace talks with Boko Haram.

But the negotiations never happened and were widely seen as a sham so some analysts will question how much credence to give to Mr Deby’s latest comments about the jihadist group, he adds.

Mr Shekau took over as the group’s leader after the its founder, Muhammad Yusuf, died in Nigerian police custody in July 2009.

Under his leadership the group has become more radical and carried out more killings. BBC