A suicide bomber attack killed 22 persons and injured 11 others at mosque in Borno State this morning.
A member of the youth vigilance group told our correspondent that the suicide bomber attacked a mosque in Molai-Umarari village, behind the Molai Hospital, on the outskirts of Maiduguri, the state capital.
According to the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the incident occurred at about 5am during the Muslim early morning prayers.
He said members of the youth vigilance group subsequently trooped to the area to offer assistance to the injured and get the dead to the mortuary.
“Presently I am at the scene of the attack, we have our men here with soldiers and emergency workers who are working to bring back normalcy and get both the dead and injured to the hospital,” he said.
Molai is about 10 kilometres from Maiduguri on the Maiduguri-Damboa-Biu Road.
A suicide bomber blew himself up near the defence ministry building in Kabul on Saturday, causing “casualties”, officials said, hours after an attack in Afghanistan’s restive east killed 13 people.
The attacks come amid fresh efforts by Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and the US to restart talks aimed at ending the Taliban’s long and bloody insurgency in Afghanistan.
“It’s an attack, there are casualties,” Kabul police chief Abdul Rahman Rahimi told AFP, without giving details of how many were killed or wounded.
Defence ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri said the suicide bomber was on foot when he struck.
An AFP photographer at the scene saw several ambulances converging at the scene of the explosion as police and the army set up a security cordon.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack but Taliban insurgents regularly hit government, military and police targets as part of their campaign to overthrow the Western-backed administration of President Ashraf Ghani.
Earlier on Saturday a suicide bomber on a motorbike struck at a market in Asadabad, the capital of restive Kunar province, killing 13 people and wounding at least 40.
A witness who did not want to be named, told AFP that an influential tribal elder who had led a local uprising against the Taliban in the past, was the target of the attack and was killed.
Last week delegates from Afghanistan, China, the US and Pakistan met in Kabul for a fourth round of talks aimed at forming a path back to the nascent peace process, which was interrupted by last summer’s announcement that Taliban leader Mullah Omar had died.
The fresh peace initiative comes as the insurgents wage an unprecedented winter campaign of violence across Afghanistan, underscoring a worsening security situation more than 14 years after they were driven out of power by US-led NATO forces.
On Wednesday the Taliban said they had not been officially contacted by Kabul about the resumption of talks, which began last year but came to a sudden halt after Kabul leaked news of the death of Taliban leader Mullah Omar two years earlier.
A teenage girl packed with explosives by Boko Haram ripped off her vest to avoid taking part in the attack on Borno Internally Displaced Persons camp (IDPs) in Dikwa, Borno State on Tuesday.
Suicide Bomber
Two others with her, however, walked into the middle of hundreds of people lining up for food before they blew themselves up in the attack that killed 58 and injured 78.
It was the most lethal attack launched by the sect in recent months.
A Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) fighter Modu Awami said yesterday that the third would-be bomber, looking about 14, has confessed.
Awami, who helped question the girl, said she was scared because she knew she would kill people.
A rescue official who confirmed it, said the girl has given officials information about other planned bombings
The United States (U.S.) Embassy in Nigeria yesterday condemned the attacks on Dikwa.
The US Diplomatic Mission in Abuja, in a statement, restated the U.S. government’s continued support for the Nigerian government in fighting terrorism.
“The US Embassy condemns the reported suicide attacks on internally displaced persons in Dikwa town, Borno State,that occurred on Feb. 9.
“The US remains committed to assisting internally displaced populations in North-Eastern Nigeria through humanitarian relief efforts.
“We will also continue to support the Nigerian government in its fight against terrorism,’’ it said.
Thirty persons were killed when two female suicide bombers attacked an Internally Displaced Persons camp in Borno State on Tuesday, the Chairman of Borno State Emergency Management Agency, Ahmed Satomi, has said.
Double bombing rocks Jos, 13-year-old with suicide vest held
Satomi said 78 persons were injured in the attack, which occurred at the camp in Dikwa at about 6.30am on Tuesday.
But AP quoting some unnamed officials said that at least 56 people were killed in the attack.
Dikwa is about 90 kilometres from Maiduguri, the Borno state capital and was recently reclaimed from Boko Haram fighters by Nigerian soldiers. Over 70,000 displaced persons are being housed in IDP camps in the town.
He said the two female bombers stormed the IDPs camp in Dikwa Local Government Area of Borno State at about 6.30 am on Tuesday, blew up themselves in the midst of the crowd of displaced persons, killing over 30 persons and injuring 78 others in the process.
Satomi, who spoke to one of our correspondents on the telephone, said, “As I am speaking to you now, I am at the Specialist Hospital, Maiduguri where those injured in the suicide bomb attack carried out by two female bombers were brought for treatment.
“It was really sad the injured were brought in today (Wednesday) because of the distance between Dikwa and Maiduguri.”
He said those killed were buried on Tuesday. Satomi added that the military had beefed up security around the town.
Meanwhile, troops of the Nigerian Army have killed an unspecified number of insurgents in an early morning ambush at a major cattle market in Gwai Mainari area of Borno State.
The Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Sani Usman, said that the troops of the 212 Tank Battalion, 29 Task Force Brigade were on a mission to flush out Boko Haram remnants from the North-East when they saw the insurgents.
Usman said that the troops, who were supported by the operatives of the quick response group in the offensive, killed some of the insurgents. But he was silent on the number of the terrorists killed.
He added that some of the terrorists escaped with gunshot wounds.
According to him, the troops also captured one Hilux vehicle containing some gallons of fuel, arms and ammunition from the insurgents.
The statement partly read, “In continuation of their clearance operations of remnants of Boko Haram terrorists in the North-East, troops of 212 Tank Battalion, 29 Task Force Brigade, early this morning ambushed some Boko Haram elements at a major cattle market in Gwai Mainari around Mainok general area.
“The ambush party supported by a quick response group captured a Hilux vehicle containing eight jerry cans of petroleum, oil and lubricants, large quantity of 7.62mm ammunition, 127mm ammunition and four AK-47 rifles, as well as five hand grenades.
“Some of the terrorists were killed while others escaped with gunshot wounds. It is important to note that more operational strategies are being employed to further flush out the remnants of Boko Haram terrorists wherever they might be hiding in the North-East.”
The Theater Command of Operation Lafiya Dole of the Nigerian Army on Friday alerted Borno residents on a planned attack by Boko Haram terrorists using beggars and other strategies.
Abubakar Shekau
The Media Coordinator of the Theater, Col. Mustapha Anka, made this known in a statement in Maiduguri.
Anka said, “the attention of the Operation Lafiya Dole has been drawn to a terrorists’ intention to use beggars to cause mayhem in the state.
“Under the plan, concealed explosives in bundles of firewood are to be placed in crowded and strategic areas of Maiduguri and environs to cause havoc.”
He said that the terrorists had also devised a new means of attracting the public by shouting Boko Haram to create panic.
“Additionally, the general public should be weary of a terrorists plan to deceive the public by way of shouting `Boko Haram’ to create panic in order to lure unsuspecting public for maximum casualty while detonating their bombs during and after the new year celebrations,” Anka said.
He, therefore, advised residents to be extra vigilant during and after the new year celebrations.
He said “the Theater wishes to remind the public to be extra vigilant during and after the new year celebrations as the ban on bangers and fireworks is still in force.”
Meanwhile, the state government had announced total restriction on vehicular movement during the new year celebration on Friday.
Scores of people were feared killed, on Monday, when two female suicide bombers attacked a busy motor park in Madagali town of Adamawa State.
A witness, Danladi Buba, said the two female suicide bombers detonated bombs at a mini market near a motor park around 9am, killing many people, reports Premium Times.
“About 30 people were killed with 16 others injured,” Mr. Buba said.
When contacted, the Brigade Commander of 28 Task Force Brigade, Mubi, Victor Ezugwu, confirmed the incident, saying the casualty figure was yet to be established.
“Two female suicide bombers struck at a garage in Madagali and detonated their devices, and we lost some beloved country men,” Mr. Ezugwu, a brigadier-general, said.
He said the injured had been taken to hospital while the military had cordoned off the area.
The brigade commander said the situation had been brought under control.
The Defence Headquarters (DHQ), has warned members of the public that the Boko Haram terrorists have now devised a deadly tactic of luring people together in order to bomb them.
This was disclosed on Monday in a statement signed by the Director of Defence Information (DDI), Brig-Gen. Rabe Abubakar.
“It has come to the knowledge of the DHQ that Boko Haram terrorists have now devised other means of inflicting harm on innocent citizens to further their terrorist cause,” Abubakar stated.
He said that some of such tactics they now, use include crying and feigning pains and shouting to attract sympathy from unsuspecting public.
“When a lot of people of goodwill gather to render help in the process, the suicide bomber detonates bombs which they conceal under their clothes. The recent suicide bombing in Damaturu is instructive,” he explained.
Similarly, he said, suicide bombers used monetary incentives and other inducements especially in crowded places to lure innocent citizens in order to cause colossal damage to both lives and property.
He cited: “The Yola suicide incident is fresh in our memory”.
At least eight people have been confirmed dead in a suicide bomb attack that took place in Mafia, a town in Borno State.
Borno state police commissioner, Mr. Aderemi Opadokun, has confirmed the blast in a text message to our correspondent.
He stated: “Yes, at about 1040 hrs of Sunday, 22/11/15, a suspected female suicide bomber while approaching Mafa checkpoint on foot at Galimari Village detonated an IED strapped to her body in the midst of a crowd trying to enter Maiduguri.
“The explosion killed eight persons including the bomber, eight others were injured.”
“Scene of the incident was visited, the victims and corpses conveyed to hospital and investigation in progress and the area is now safe.”
Maiduguri—Nigerian soldiers, yesterday, shot dead a suspected suicide bomber outside a Military base in Maiduguri, Borno State, a civilian vigilante and a military source told newsmen. The shooting detonated explosives concealed in her handbag.
The target was thought to be the Maimalari Army Barracks, the main military base in Maiduguri, which had been hit repeatedly in recent months by Boko Haram terrorists.
Babakura Kolo, from the civilian volunteer force assisting troops against the rebels, said: “Soldiers at Maimalari Army Barracks this morning (yesterday) foiled a suicide attack by a female bomber.
“The woman approached the barracks around 7a.m. and headed towards the gates.
“Guards at the gates asked her to stop for security checks, but she ignored them and continued walking towards the gates, a handbag slung over her shoulder.
“One of the soldiers opened fire on the woman and the handbag exploded, blowing the woman to pieces.”
There were no other casualties in the explosion, which one military officer in the city described as an “attempted suicide attack by Boko Haram terrorists.”
Boko Haram has intensified its use of multiple suicide bombers to inflict maximum casualties, with secondary explosions detonated as people rush to help victims of the initial blast.
No fewer than 34 people were killed in a wave of attacks last Thursday night and Friday morning on the outskirts of Maiduguri, while last month 117 died in explosions in the Ajilari Cross area of the Borno State capital.
Of the six suicide attacks this month, four have been in Maiduguri, killing about 48 and injuring 99.
The military source, who requested anonymity, said the use of human bombs was a sign of the group’s desperation and frustration.
“They are looking for every opportunity to hit back, which is why they have resorted to soft-target attacks on mosques and markets and such attacks on a military base is intended to show the terrorists are still strong,” the officer added.
Dozens of worshippers were killed Thursday when two suicide bombers blew themselves up in a mosque in the northeastern Nigerian city of Maiduguri, witnesses said.
Bomb Scene
“All the people in the mosque died. Not a single one escaped,” said Muhtari Ahmadu, a trader near the scene.
“We counted 42 dead bodies outside the mosque,” added Amadu Marte, a vigilante supporting the security forces in the fight against the Islamist Boko Haram group, which has carried out repeated attacks in the region.
Borno state police confirmed that the mosque was hit by twin bombings but gave a lower toll of about 14 dead.
Following the explosions, the mosque collapsed and injured “many people praying”, the police said in a statement.
“Casualties have been evacuated to UMTH (University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital) and specialist hospitals in Maiduguri,” it added.
The bombers slipped into the mosque disguised as worshippers, witnesses said.
One of the attackers set off the first blast when he entered the mosque, they said. The second bomber detonated his explosives soon after, when many had rushed to the scene to help the first victims.
“When rescuers and sympathizers gathered in front of the place, the second one went off, killing many of them,” Marte said.
The blasts occurred around 6:30pm (1730 GMT) in Molai, in the western suburbs of Maiduguri, where worshippers had gathered for evening prayers, the witnesses said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack but suspicion fell on Boko Haram, which was founded in Borno’s state capital Maiduguri in 2009.
The city has been hit repeatedly since President Muhammadu Buhari came to power on May 29 with a vow to crush the insurgency.
Boko Haram claimed responsibility for three suicide attacks in the satellite towns of Kuje and Nyanya outside Nigeria’s capital Abuja on October 2, which killed a total of 18 people and injured 41.
Nigeria’s military claims the Islamist militants are a spent force and that troops have driven them from their camps and occupied territory in the remote region.
But guerrilla-style attacks have continued, including across the border. At the weekend, 41 people were killed in triple explosions in Baga Sola, on the Chadian side of Lake Chad, where Nigeria meets Niger, Chad and Cameroon.
The four countries have launched a joint offensive against the Islamists.
Their mission received a boost on Wednesday when US President Barack Obama said he was deploying up to 300 military personnel to Cameroon for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations against Boko Haram insurgents.
At least 17,000 people have been killed and more than 2.5 million made homeless since Boko Haram began its bloody campaign for an
Twenty-seven persons were killed and 62 others injured during bomb attacks on Monguno, a town about 135 kilometres from Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State.
Bomb Scene
A member of the youth vigilante group, Idris Baba, told our correspondent on Tuesday that the Monguno attack happened at about the same time 54 persons were killed through bombs planted by members of the Boko Haram Islamic sect in Maiduguri on Sunday.
He said a bomb explosion from a suicide bomber hit the Onion section of a local market at Monguno on Sunday evening, which resulted in the death of not less than 27 persons, mostly traders.
A medical officer at the state Specialists Hospital, Maiduguri, who spoke anonymously, said, “Five vehicles conveyed 62 injured persons from the Monguno attack to the Specialists Hospital in Maiduguri (on Monday afternoon) but we quickly asked them to go to the University Teaching Hospital, because our facilities are over-stretched.”
A resident of Monguno, Baana Abubakar, who accompanied some of the injured persons to Maiduguri, confirmed to our correspondent that 27 persons were killed.
“I was at the Onion market after the bomb explosion to help in the rescue of people. I counted 27 dead bodies from the scene,” he said.
“We lost 27 people in the bomb blast. Our people have started burying the dead ones. One of the injured ones we brought to Maiduguri today also died,” he said.
Confirming the attack, the Borno State Police Commissioner, Aderemi Opadokun, in a text message, said, “Yes, at about 1330 hrs of 21/9/15, caretaker Chairman of Monguno Local Government reported an IED Explosion at Monguno Onion Market at about 2130 hrs of 20/9/15.
“Some people died on the spot while others sustained various degrees of injuries. Injured victims were transferred to UMTH, Maiduguri, while the dead were buried by their relations. The scene has been visited. Investigation is presently in progress.”
Monguno is the birth place of the National Security Adviser, Maj. Gen. Babagana Monguno.
Meanwhile, the pan-Northern socio-political organisation, Arewa Consultative Forum, on Tuesday urged the Nigerian military never to be deterred by the renewed bombing by the Boko Haram insurgents in Maiduguri, Borno State.
The Boko Haram terrorists had on Sunday carried out multiple suicide bombings which claimed 50 lives at Damari and Bulunkutu areas of Borno State.
However, the ACF said in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Muhammad Ibrahim, in Kaduna that the military was already winning the war on insurgents and should not relent.
According to the forum, with the renewed effort of the military and the civilian JTF, Maiduguri had experienced relative peace, “but for this wicked act of barbarism on September 20,2015.”
The ACF, while condemning the continued use of suicide bombers by Boko Haram to kill innocent people, also hailed the Nigerian military for the onslaught on the terrorists’ enclaves.
It noted that all the Nigerian military needed to route out the insurgents was to intensify its intelligence synergy with the community.
The northern body said,”Arewa Consultative Forum was shocked and disturbed by the sad news of the multiple bomb blasts again which occurred on Sunday September 20, 2015, at Gomari and Bulunkutu areas of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, killing about 50 people with many injured.
“The ACF condemns in strong terms the continued use of suicide bombers by Boko Haram terrorists to kill innocent people in the name of a religious war, as no religion condones such cruel and barbaric act.
“The ACF wishes to commend the military and other security agencies for the continued onslaught on the terrorists’ enclaves and hideouts, thereby dislodging them from their strong holds.
“The ACF urges the military not to be deterred by the cowardly act of the Boko Haram terrorists, as their renewed effort and determination will soon end the insurgency.
“The ACF also appeals to the military to intensify its synergy of sharing intelligence with the community.”
The ACF also condoled with families of those who lost their loved ones, the government and people of Borno State over the tragic incident.
NAF rotates troops engaged in counter-terrorism operations
Daji Sani in Yola and Senator Iroegbu in Abuja
Twelve people lost their lives on Friday while scores were injured in two suicide bomb attacks by suspected Bokom Haram members at the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Camp in Yola and Madagali town, both in Adamawa State.
Bomb Scene
The bombs were detonated inside a tent at the Malkohi IDP camp at around 10:50am and claimed seven lives.
Two female suicide bombers were reported to have detonated the bombs which also injured 13 people including, four National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) officials.
Adamawa state commissioner of information, Ahmed Sajoh confirmed the casualty figure to journalists in Yola shortly after visiting the injured victims at the Federal Medical Centre, Yola.
Sajoh lamented that an unaccompanied toddler was among the dead just as he expressed sadness that even those on humanitarian service were not spared the fury of the suicide bombers.
He further explained that one of the NEMA officials had already been treated and discharged while two others sustained minor injuries.
The commissioner noted that Governor Muhammadu Jibrilla Bindow has directed the state emergency management agency to foot the medical bills of the injured.
Sajoh said that the state government was working in conjunction with all security agencies to ensure a water tight security around all IDP facilities in the state, adding that security agencies were currently re-screening all the IDPs at the Malkohi camp.
He urged residents to be extra vigilant and report suspicious persons to security personnel.
5 killed in Madagali…
Also yesterday, five persons were killed in another bomb blast near a market in Madagali town, Madagali Local Government Area of the Adamawa State, leaving several others injured.
The bomb was allegedly detonated by a female suicide bomber.
The incident occurred at about the same time with the Malkohi bomb attack. The same Boko Haram group is suspected to have masterminded the twin bomb blasts in the state.
Sajoh also confirmed the Madagali attack.
Buhari reacts…
In a swift reaction to the attack, President Muhammadu Buhari directed authorities to tighten security measures in all camps harbouring internally displaced persons in the country.
The president equally described as heinous and cowardly the bomb blast in the Malkohi camp which resulted in loss of lives.
He said that the terrorists were bent on causing fear and panic among the populace by detonating bombs within soft spots where hapless citizens resided and called on the public not to be deterred but rise in unison to root out whatever was left of the terrorists.
“We must not let the desperate and evil-minded criminals have any respite. There’s now an urgent need for all to be paying utmost attention to security issues at all levels – home, work, market, places of worship, schools, etc.
“To defeat terrorism, all round the clock vigilance is called for.”
He urged members of thee public to provide security agents with vital information to pre-empt and prevent crimes and to forestall further insurgent activities.
NAF Rotates Troops Engaged in Counter-Terrorism Operations…
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has started rotating members of its ground forces fighting alongside the troops of the Nigerian Army who have spent over six months in the counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency (CT COIN) operations code named ‘Operation Lafiya Dole’ in the North-east.
This was disclosed yesterday in a statement signed by the Director of Public Relations and Information (DoPRI), Air Commodore Dele Alonge.
According to Alonge, the latest troop rotation, in line with the usual practice, is aimed at reinvigorating the personnel, and their commitment to the ongoing fight against the Boko Haram, by replacing the weary hands with fresh ones.
He said that the rotation also had the corollary effect of morale boosting for the troops.
He added that troops have been airlifted with the NAF C-130H aircraft from the theatre of operation to their various units.
During the short but colourful ceremony, the DoPRI said the Commander of 79 Composite Group Maiduguri, Air Commodore Chris Egwoba on behalf of the Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar commended the efforts of the gallant airmen and wish them success in their future endeavours.
Toyota Donates Trucks to MNJTF…
Also yesterday, Toyota Nigeria Limited donated some Hilux vans to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) in Maiduguri.
The Director of Defence Information (DDI), Col. Rabe Abubakar, who confirmed this said that the Trucks were received by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Gen. Abayomi Gabriel Olonisakin.
Olonisakin expressed profound gratitude to the management and staff of TNL describing the company’s gesture as a show of public support and approval for MNJTF actions.
Six people, including two suspected suicide bombers, have died in two bomb explosions that occurred on Tuesday in Damaturu, Yobe State capital.
Abubakar Shekau
Yobe Police Command Public Relations Officer, DSP Toyin Gbadegeshin, confirmed the incident to the News Agency of Nigeria.
Gbadegeshin said three others were in critical condition, while 40 others, who sustained various degrees of injury, had been taken to hospitals in the area.
He said one of the explosions involving a female suicide bomber of about 12 years of age, happened at the entrance of the Damaturu main motor park.
“The girl detonated the explosive at the screening centre of the motor park gate, killing herself and four others, including a pregnant woman and a baby.
“The other explosive went off at about the same time with the first one at Pompomari, when a suspected male suicide bomber, sensing he will be apprehended, ran into a nearby bush and the explosive went off, killing him alone,” the police spokesman said.
Meanwhile, Director of Press to Yobe Governor, Alhaji Abdullahi Bego, described the incident as “sad and unfortunate.”
NAN reports that officials of the State Emergency Management Agency and hospital staff were providing emergency support to the victims.
A female suicide bomber blew herself up Friday at a big market in the northeast Nigerian city of Maiduguri, a vigilante and a witness said.
“There had been a suicide attack on Gamboru market this morning. It was a female suicide bomber. The attack happened around 6:30 am (0530 GMT) as the grocers were arriving in the market which starts early,” said the vigilante, Babakura Kolo.
There is no immediate information on the number of victims, although witness accounts suggest that there have been casualties.
“From accounts we gathered from people around, the woman arrived on a taxi tricycle, as every woman grocer does. She blew herself up as soon as the tricycle stopped in the midst of other tricycles that were dropping traders off,” Kolo told AFP.
A witness, who declined to be named, corroborated this account.
“I was at home when I heard a loud explosion that sent me rushing out of my house. It was coming from the Gamboru market. I went there, but from afar. The place was littered with victims and burning rickshaws,” the source told AFP.
The Gamboru market is the second largest in Maiduguri, capital of Borno state.
A “mentally handicapped” female suicide bomber killed at least 14 people and injured 47 more last Sunday at a crowded market Damaturu, capital of neighbouring Yobe state.
Damaturu was also the scene of a triple suicide bombing on July 18 when three girls blew themselves up killing at least 13 people as residents prepared for the Eid festival marking the end of Ramadan.
No fewer than 19 persons were killed in a suicide attack on a market in Damaturu, the Yobe State capital, on Sunday.
Bomb Scene
The State Police Command has, however, said 15 people died and 47 others were injured in the explosion.
The Police Public Relations Officer of the Yobe State Police Command, Toyin Gbadegesin, told journalists that a female suicide bomber, whose age he believed could not more be more than 10 years, carried out the attack.
He said the small girl detonated an Improvised Explosive Device at the entrance of the market at about 9.30am on Sunday.
He said preliminary report indicated that 15 people had been killed while 47 others, who were injured, were receiving treatment at the Sani Abacha Specialist Hospital in Damaturu.
The PPRO explained that five units of primed IEDs were also recovered from the scene of the blast, warning the people to be careful with people carrying bags as the militants had resorted to using bags in conveying their explosive devices.
Meanwhile, the Yobe State Governor, Ibrahim Gaidam, in a statement by his Director of Press, Abdullahi Bego, on Sunday, described the attack as horrific.
The governor said “has been briefed about the horrific bomb attack in a market in Damaturu today, in which 19 people were killed and many others injured.”
The statement added, “This is another sad day in our state in which innocent people were again the target of blood-thirsty terrorists.
“His Excellency Governor Gaidam’s thoughts and prayers are with the families of victims and those who sustained injuries. The governor has condemned the attack as callous, barbaric and unjustifiable.”
A Suicide bomber attacked a military check point on the suburbs of Maiduguri killing yet unidentified numbers of innocent Nigerians,
The incident happened at the Jimtilo checkpoint, southern part of Maiduguri around 12pm.
Since the assumption of office of the new President, Muhammadu Buhari, Boko Haram who were at the run during the end of the former President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, staged a daring come back.
More than 400 Nigerians have been reportedly killed and hundreds injured for the past 15 days.
The Federal government has urged Nigerians to come down as the government is strategising to either negotiate or deal with the insurgency once and for all.
A suicide bomber driving a commercial tricycle has killed three persons and injured three others on Saturday morning in Maiduguri, Borno State, witnesses have said.According to one of the witnesses, Yusuf Adamu, the explosion occurred at about 7.10am when motor parks in the town were full of activities as travelers get to join commuter buses out of town.
Bomb Scene
Adamu said a tricycle attempted to ram into a vehicle that just came out of Borno Motor Garage, the biggest in the town, where vehicles were joined to destinations outside the town.
Adamu, who claimed he was near the scene of the incident, said the tricyclist had waited for a vehicle to emerge from the motor park and immediately sped after it but could not catch up with it.
About a kilometer away, it exploded and killed three passers-by on the highway and left another three injured.
He said: “I was at the motor park to board a vehicle when the explosion occurred. The park is near the SSS office and a tricycle was targeting a bus that just left the motor park but triggered off the explosion before it could get to bus. Four people, including the bomber, were killed.”
Meanwhile a suicide bomber has struck outside a main crowded market in Chad’s capital, killing 17 people and injuring scores of others, a police spokesman told Al Jazeera.
Authorities said the assailant was disguised as a woman wearing a full face veil when he detonated explosives as police tried to stop him in N’Djamena on Saturday.
Two policemen were among those killed in the third attack in the country’s capital in less than a month.
Saturday’s blast came a week after suspected Boko Haram fighters killed 26 people in nightly attacks on two villages on Lake Chad.
Less than a month ago, suicide bombers on motorcycles attacked two buildings in N’Djamena, killing nearly 40 people in the first assault of its kind since the armed group threatened the country earlier this year.
Confusion enveloped Dogarawa in Sabon Gari Local Government Area, a few kilometres from Zaria City, on Tuesday after a female suicide bomber detonated an Improvised Explosive Device, killing no fewer than 40 people while scores sustained varying degrees of injuries.
Double bombing rocks Jos, 13-year-old with suicide vest held
The deaths as well as those critically injured were taken to the St. Luke Hospital, Wusasa and the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Shika, both in Zaria.
Eyewitness said a verification of staff was in progress at the secretariat when the explosion occurred.
According to the source, the female suicide bomber joined the queue of staff, pretending to be part of the workers before detonating the explosive, killing over 30 people, including herself, instantly.
The exercise, it was gathered, coincided with the inaugural address by the new Chairman, Interim Management Committee of the local government.
Our correspondent also learnt that most of the victims were female primary school teachers from Kubau, Lere, Sabon Gari local governments among others.
The State Governor, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, and the State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Umar Shehu, visited the scene of the blast for an on-the-spot assessment of the incident.
El-Rufai confirmed the incident on his twitter handle, indicating that 20 people were killed in the blast that rocked the secretariat while staff verification was in progress.
Later in a statement, the governor, through his Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Samuel Aruwan, said the death toll had risen to 25 people while 50 others sustained varying degrees of injuries.
Chief Medical Director of the ABU Teaching Hospital, Zaria, Prof. Lawal Khalid, simple said, “Above a dozen people died.”
Health workers, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told our correspondent that no fewer than 26 people died.
They said those critically injured were receiving treatment, noting that they needed blood, calling on people to donate blood to the victims.
Bello Hassan, 32, a worker at the secretariat, said the explosion happened while the verification exercise was going on.
“Frankly speaking, there is tension around the area. I can not give the figure (death) now but I saw many bodies that littered the ground,” he added.
Also, a female employee at the local government, Aisha Mohammed, told our correspondent on the telephone that they were in a 500 capacity hall when “suddenly, we heard a deafening sound of the explosion.”
Two suicide bombers have succeeded in killing at least 30 persons in a popular Maidudugiri fish market on Monday.
The suicide bombers sneaked into the market, waited for innocent traders to converge for prayers before detonating themselves.
Bomb Scene
A source t the hospital confirmed that 30 people had lost their lives and many others injured
The suicide bombers, according to a witness account were two female teenagers who hid their deadly explosives in their hijab.
A witness who recounted the incident said the first sucide bombers was responsible for a number of death and the second suicide bomber developed cold feet after witnessing the first incident, but blew herself up while attempting to flee the crowd.
The witness narrated in Hausa that : “the two young girls that caused the explosions were in their teenage ages”.
“The first girl waited for the traders to commence prayers before she crept upon them and detonated the bomb, killing a large number of persons and injuring many. Some of our fellow traders said they saw the young girl wandering about shortly before the prayers,” he said.
“We all heard the second explosion coming not less than five minutes after the first blast. Those that were close to the scene said they spotted the female teenager running before she blew herself up, near BEWAC complex along Baga road,” Idi said.
A member of the vigilante group, Modu Ibrahim told journalist that: “the suicide bombers found their way into the market during the second afternoon prayer when most people were in groups to pray.”
“They detonated the bombs tied to their bodies few meters apart,” he added.
Continuing, Ibrahim said,”apart from the two suicide bombers, 11 other persons were blown apart and 10 others severely injured.”
A resident of the city confirmed that the injured victims were taken to the state’s specialist Hopsital.
“One of the female suicide bombers detonated an Improvised Explosive Device strapped to her body, killing herself in the process. Also, a lady was said to have been apprehended earlier with what was suspected to be IED in her possession, ” he added.
The attacks come amid fresh efforts by Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and the US to restart talks aimed at ending the Taliban’s long and bloody insurgency in Afghanistan.
