Witnesses told how the attackers sped into the town on January 3 with grenade launcherstheir gunfire and explosions shattering the early morning calm. Some terrified residents fled, while others took refuge in their homesand were torched with them.
Local officials reported death tolls ranging from hundreds to as many as 2,000 people. But authorities have yet to access the remote area near the border with Chad to get a full picture.
Amnesty International said that satellite images taken on January 2 and five days later “provide indisputable and shocking evidence” of the extent of the destruction in Baga and neighboring village of Doron Baga, also known as Doro Gowan.
The before-and-after images demonstrate that the attacks left more than 3,700 structures damaged or destroyed, the rights group said.
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It has also kidnapped students, including more than 200 schoolgirls who were abducted in April — and remain missing.
The Islamist group has said its aim is to impose a stricter form of Sharia law across Nigeria, which is split between a majority Muslim north and a mostly Christian south.
CNN’s Faith Karimi and Aminu Abubakar contributed to this report.
