The Wall Street Journal reports: Following its bloody siege on a garrison town, the militant Islamist group Boko Haram has carried out a nearly weeklong massacre in northeastern Nigeria, officials and residents said Friday, creating a gruesome backdrop to the country’s presidential campaign.

The militants that overtook the remote town of Baga on Saturday spent the next days hunting down and killing its residents, survivors said.

One man, Bulama Masta, said he lost his five children as they tried to swim and hike their way to safety. Two drowned on Saturday and the other three were shot on Sunday as they ran, he said. He arrived Monday into the largest nearby city, Maiduguri.

Boko Haram fighters swept through the surrounding villages outside Baga, killing residents of communities who they consider to be opponents, as well as men who tried to escape, according to Mr. Masta and other survivors, as well as officials and local vigilantes.

On Wednesday, Boko Haram burned down the entire town. [Continue reading…]