国际英语新闻:Nigerian president condemns Bama town killings

ABUJA, May 8 (Xinhua) -- Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has condemned the dastardly terrorist attacks in northeast Borno State that claimed many lives.

The Nigerian leader also warned that the government's consideration of dialogue as an option for the elimination of some current threats to security should not be seen as a weakness.

The president was apparently reacting to Tuesday attacks unleashed on Bama, a town close to Maiduguru, the capital of Borno state by the dreaded armed group Boko Haram which claimed many lives.

President Jonathan, according to a statement issued by his media aide, Reuben Abati, sees the continuous attacks on innocent Nigerians as affront to the ongoing efforts to establish a workable framework for dialogue and peaceful resolution to the security situation in northern Nigeria.

He extended sincere condolences to the families and colleagues of the soldiers, policemen and prison officials who lost their lives in the dastardly attack.

Military and police officials on Tuesday confirmed that at least 55 people were killed when suspected Boko Haram sect attacked security formations in the Nigeria troubled northeast Borno State.

Spokesman of the military led Joint Task Force (JTF) in Borno, Lt- Colonel Sagir Musa said that the gunmen attacked Bama, a commercial town about 187 kilometers away from Maiduguri, the epicenter of the insurgency early Tuesday.