MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — Officials say Nigeria's military has conducted door-to-door searches in two north Nigeria cities following repeated and bloody attacks by a radical sect.

Yobe state police commissioner Patrick Egbuniwe said the curfews Saturday affected the cities of Damaturu and Potiskum, both frequent targets by the sect known as Boko Haram. Egbuniwe said he didn't know when the curfew would be lifted, as the military hopes to flush out Boko Haram gunmen living in neighborhoods in the two cities.

Boko Haram has waged a bloody fight against Nigeria's weak central government and has been blamed for killing more than 680 people this year alone, according to an Associated Press count.

Officials have blamed the sect for an attack Thursday night on a pediatric hospital in Maiduguri that killed an intern.
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AP