Boko Haram attacks have displaced thousands in Nigeria this year: Human Rights Watch

Suspected Boko Haram Islamists armed with explosives attacked a residential neighborhood and a military barracks in Nigeria's troubled northeastern city of Maiduguri on Friday, witnesses said.

Boko Haram, which says it wants to create a strict Islamic state in northern Nigeria, has killed thousands of people in its four-and-half-year uprising and the military has struggled to contain the violence.

According to multiple witness accounts, the gunmen entered Maiduguri after crossing a river on the fringes of the city. 

They passed through the residential neighborhood of Fauri, opened fire on civilians and torched several homes. Details on casualties were not immediately available.

An AFP reporter near the Giwa military barracks said the shooting there started shortly after 7:00 (0600 GMT).

The gunmen tossed explosives into the military compound, but it was not clear if they were able to force their way in, he reported, adding that smoke could still be seen billowing out of the barracks.

Area resident Dauda Mahmud said the Boko Haram gunmen "came in large numbers."

Another witness, who requested anonymity, told AFP that "explosions and gunfire could be heard throughout the city."

"We have never heard such explosions in this city for a very long time," he added.

Students at the University of Maiduguri reported hearing sustained gunfire throughout the morning.

The campus is near the barracks and it was not clear if the university was separately targeted.

"There have been several deafening explosions and unending gunfire for the past one hour," said student Mercy Bitrus.

"The fighting is no doubt taking place near Giwa barracks which is very close to us because the sounds are coming from the direction of the barracks," she added.

Roughly 700 killed this year 

The name Boko Haram means "Western education is forbidden" and schools and universities have been repeatedly targeted during the conflict.

The military in Borno state, where Maiduguri is the capital, did not answer repeated phone calls seeking comment.

Human Rights Watch on Friday said Boko Haram has carried out more than 40 attacks already in 2014 which have killed roughly 700 people and displaced thousands. 

“The horrific attacks by Boko Haram are having a devastating impact on northern Nigerians,” said Daniel Bekele, Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “Hundreds of thousands have fled to other parts of Nigeria and neighboring countries, and their rights should be protected.”

The northeast, Boko Haram's stronghold, has been the hardest hit area.

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The region has been under a state of emergency since May, when the military launched a major offensive aimed at crushing the insurgency, but the success of the operation has been questioned.

Nearly 300,000 people have fled their homes in the northeast since emergency rule was imposed, Human Rights Watch said, citing UN figures.

The New York-based rights group said much more needed to done to assist those caught up in the fighting.

Rights abuses by security forces

Nigerian security forces have committed human rights abuses as they fight a near five year Islamist insurgency by the Boko Haram sect, a UN official said on Friday.

"Many people I have met with during this visit openly acknowledge human rights violations have been committed by the security forces," the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, told reporters in Abuja.

"These have served to alienate communities, and create fertile ground for Boko Haram to cultivate new recruits," she added.