Boko Haram suspected of seizing 60 more Nigerian women and girls

Suspected Boko Haram militants have abducted 60 more girls and women and 31 boys in weekend attacks on villages in northeast Nigeria, witnesses said, another sign of the Nigerian military's failure to curb an Islamic uprising.

"Over 60 women were hijacked and forcefully taken away by the terrorists. The village was also destroyed," a Damboa district government official said, adding that villagers had fled to other parts of Borno and across the border into Adamawa state.

"Among those abducted are children between the ages of three and 12," he said.

The military in Abuja said late on Monday that it could not confirm the latest abductions.

Confirming the incident, a village vigilante, Aji Khalil, said: "Over 60 women were abducted by Boko Haram terrorists. Four villagers who tried to escape were shot dead on the spot."

Damboa officials said they were afraid to speak out because of the controversy surrounding the recent abduction of more than 200 girls from Chibok village of the same state, with Nigeria's government coming under heavy criticism for its slow response.

Another resident, who fled to the Borno state capital Maiduguri, said more than 30 men were killed during the raid, which began on Thursday.