Military Denies Islamist Caliphate Rule in Northeast

Nigeria’s military denied claims by Islamist militants Boko Haram that the group seized control of a northeastern town in which it intends to impose Shariah law.

Abubakar Shekau, who leads the insurgents, said in a video given to reporters yesterday that it would enforce Islamic law in Gwoza, a town of about 250,000 people, in Borno state, about 850 kilometers (528 miles) northeast of the capital, Abuja.

“The claim is empty,” Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters said on its Twitter account late yesterday. “The sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Nigerian state is still intact.”

Boko Haram, which has been waging war on the Nigerian state since 2009, is intensifying its campaign of violence ahead of elections scheduled for next February. It killed more..........