Suspected Islamist militants killed at least 60 people in an attack on a village in northeast Nigeria, while a separate attack killed eight people at a teacher training college, witnesses said.

Boko Haram, which wants to carve an Islamic state out of Africa's most populous country, split roughly equally between Christians and Muslims, has killed thousands since launching an uprising in the northeast 4½ years ago.

Witnesses said the gunmen attacked the village of Kala Balge, near the Cameroon border, on Thursday, from several quarters, shooting sporadically as residents tried to flee.

In a separate assault, insurgents last Wednesday killed eight people at a teacher training college in the remote village of Dikwa, witnesses said.