Suspected Boko Haram members abduct emir in Northern Nigeria

A Nigerien soldier covers his face while taking a picture of a mass grave in the recently retaken town of Damasak, Nigeria, March 20, 2015.
Suspected members of the Islamist terrorist group Boko Haram have abducted a traditional Muslim ruler in north-western Nigeria, a week before the country's general elections, a government official said.



The insurgents abducted the emir of Bukukuyum in Zamfara State, Muahmmadu Usman, Friday night, the state's commissioner of information, Ibrahim Magaji, told dpa.

The emir's whereabouts remained unknown on Saturday.

Nigeria, scheduled to hold general elections on March 28, had to postpone the vote by six weeks due to Boko Haram violence.

Boko Haram, which seeks to establish a state with its very strict interpretation of Islamic law, has killed an estimated 13,000 people since 2009.