Boko Haram militants have seized Chibok, the Nigerian town where they abducted more than 200 schoolgirls earlier this year.
Fleeing residents told the BBC that militants attacked and took control of the largely Christian town on Thursday. Over recent months Boko Haram has repeatedly attacked nearby villages.
Security forces ran away when the insurgents attacked, according to Ali Ndume, a Borno state senator.
Enoch Mark, a Christian pastor whose daughter and niece are among the 219 girls still being held, told the news agency, AFP on Friday that Boko Haram ‘are in control’ of the town.