Chadian helicopters struck at least six bases in neighboring Nigeria used by the Islamist militant group Boko Haram in response to twin bombings in the capital, N'Djamena, earlier this week, the military said. The air strikes caused "human and material damage," the Chadian army general staff said Thursday in a statement read on national radio, without giving further details. There was no independent confirmation of the raids. At least 27 people, including the four assailants, died in June 15 suicide bombings targeting police facilities in N'Djamena. Chad is part of a multinational force fighting Boko Haram in the region and says it has killed hundreds of the militants since January. Chad's government has also banned people from wearing and selling full-face veils after the attacks, Prime Minister Kalzeube Pahimi Deubet said in a statement broadcast on national television. Under the measure, ordered by President Idriss Deby, security forces will confiscate and burn any garments on sale and traders who don't comply will be arrested, he said. Landlocked Chad is sub-Saharan Africa's seventh-biggest oil producer, with Glencore Plc, Exxon Mobil Corp. and Malaysia's Petroliam Nasional Bhd. among the companies pumping crude. It's also one of the most underdeveloped countries in the world, ranking 184th out of 198 on the United Nations Human Development Index.
