Outgoing Nigeria negotiator says Islamists want talks

The head of a panel tasked with seeking an amnesty deal with Boko Haram said today that key members of the Nigerian extremist group wanted peace talks but the credibility of the claim remained in doubt.
Kabiru Tanimu Turaki, chairman of the amnesty committee which was created in April, was speaking as he submitted his final report to President Goodluck Jonathan in Nigeria's capital, Abuja.
"The process was initially difficult," Turaki said of trying to start negotiations with the insurgent group that is blamed for killing thousands since 2009.
"However many of the key members of the insurgents... have positively responded to contacts and have accepted the dialogue options capable of full resolution of the conflict," he told Jonathan.

Jonathan accepted Turaki's proposal to set up a fresh panel to further pursue peace talks.
Boko Haram's purported leader Abubakar Shekau, declared a global terrorist by the United States, has categorically ruled out such talks and dismissed claims that his commanders have had contact with Turaki.
Analysts say Boko Haram, whom the United Nations' High Commissioner for Human Rights today said could have committed crimes against humanity, likely has many factions, with Shekau leading the hardcore Islamist wing that is totally opposed to dialogue.