Thousands flee deadly Boko Haram attack in NE Nigeria

Thousands of people have fled a remote town in northeast Nigeria, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said on Wednesday, after Boko Haram fighters attacked a military base and torched aid buildings.

Monday's attack in Rann, in Borno state, has been blamed on the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) faction of Boko Haram, which has carried out similar raids against troops since July last year.

The upsurge in violence has forced tens of thousands of people to flee, including internally displaced people (IDPs) who have returned home after previous attacks.

Last week, the United Nations said there had been a "massive displacement" of more than 30,000 people after ISWAP strikes in and around Baga, on the shores of Lake Chad, in northern Borno. Military and humanitarian sources on Tuesday told AFP seven people were killed in Rann, including three soldiers.

But the medical charity's emergency programme manager, Hugues Robert, said they were told the death tally was higher -- and that some 10,000 people had fled to the border.

"The figures we got yesterday from people who have been there... were 14 people died," he told AFP by phone from Geneva.