Boko Haram Militants Sentenced to Life in Prison in Nigeria

Harshest sentences ever given to Boko Haram militants

Four alleged members of the Islamist Boko Haram group have been sentenced to life for their role in bomb attacks that killed 19 people.

They were found guilty of masterminding and carrying out attacks on an electoral commission office and a church last year.

These are the heaviest sentences given to any Boko Haram suspects.

The group is responsible for a series of deadly attacks across northern and central Nigeria.

It has increasingly targeted civilians, with more than 2,000 people killed since Boko Haram launched its insurgency in 2009 to create an Islamic state in the mainly Muslim north of Nigeria.