Nigeria: 3 women suicide bombers kill 28, wound 82

At least 28 people were killed and 82 others injured after three women suicide bombers blew themselves up at the entrance to a camp for displaced people in northeast Nigeria, according to local sources.

Baba Kura, a member of a vigilante force set up to fight jihadists said that the suicide bomb attack took place on Wednesday at Mandarari town, 25 kilometres from Maiduguri, the capital of restive Borno state.

“Three female bombers triggered their explosive outside of the IDP (internally displaced persons) camp... killing 28 people and wounding 82 others,” he said.

The first assailant blew herself up, triggering panic, he added. “People were trying to close their shops when two other female bombers triggered their explosives, causing most of the casualties,” he said.

ALSO READ: 12 people shot dead at church in Nigeria

More than 80 injured had been taken to Maiduguri hospital, Ibrahim Liman, the head of a local anti-jihadist militia force said. A huge number of patients had arrived, a hospital source said.

Northeast Nigeria is a hotbed of activity by the Boko Haram jihadist group, involving shootings, bombings and kidnappings. It launched an insurgency in 2009 that has killed about 20,000 people and displaced around 2.6 million others.

On Saturday, Boko Haram killed four people and torched homes in a night-time raid on the village of Amarwa, about 20 kilometres from Maiduguri, according to local sources.

(With PTI inputs)

ALSO READ | Niger: Nine killed, dozens kidnapped in suspected Boko Haram attack