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Nigeria raids Boko Haram cell suspected of girls' abductions

Boko Haram intelligence unit head Babuji Ya'ari has been arrested, the Nigerian military announced.

By JC Finley
(From L to R) Glen Powell, Dolph Lundgren, Harrison Ford, Kelsey Grammer, Wesley Snipes, Sylvester Stallone, Ronda Rousey, Mel Gibson, Antonio Banderas and Kellan Lutz arrive on the red carpet before the screening of the film "The Expendables 3" during the 67th annual Cannes International Film Festival in Cannes, France on May 18, 2014. The actors held up signs in support of the schoolgirls being held captive by Nigerian Islamic extremist group Boko Haram. (UPI/David Silpa)
(From L to R) Glen Powell, Dolph Lundgren, Harrison Ford, Kelsey Grammer, Wesley Snipes, Sylvester Stallone, Ronda Rousey, Mel Gibson, Antonio Banderas and Kellan Lutz arrive on the red carpet before the screening of the film "The Expendables 3" during the 67th annual Cannes International Film Festival in Cannes, France on May 18, 2014. The actors held up signs in support of the schoolgirls being held captive by Nigerian Islamic extremist group Boko Haram. (UPI/David Silpa) | License Photo

ABUJA, Nigeria, July 1 (UPI) -- The Nigerian military said it has arrested Boko Haram leader Babuji Ya'ari following a raid on the Islamist militant group's intelligence unit.

The unit is suspected of involvement in the abduction of more than 200 schoolgirls in April, the military said, and Ya'ari was identified as the unit's head.

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According to a statement by the ministry of defense, Ya'ari is a businessman who "participated actively in the abduction of the schoolgirls" in northern Nigeria's Borno state.

The ministry added that Ya'ari posed as a member of a civilian vigilante group fighting Boko Haram to disguise his militancy.

Ya'ari has not yet publicly commented on the accusations.

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