Bombs exploded in at least three locations in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno state on Monday night, emergency services said, with officials exploring whether the attacks involved suicide bombings. The blasts struck Maiduguri, the state capital, where Boko Haram has carried out an insurgency for more than a decade, according to an AP report.
Nigeria’s National Emergency Management Agency in Maiduguri said the explosions occurred near the entrance of the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital and at two local markets known as Post Office and Monday Market. Sirajo Abdullahi, head of operations at NEMA in Maiduguri, said responders were managing casualties at the hospital, adding, “There are casualties and they are still managing the causalities at the hospital.”
Abdullahi said officials could not yet give an exact figure for the dead. “We can’t give the actual figure until we count,” he said.
No group had claimed responsibility for the suspected bombings by the time of the report. Earlier in the day, the Nigerian military said it had repelled attacks by suspected Islamic militants in the early hours of Monday on the outskirts of Maiduguri.
Bagoni Alkali, an eyewitness, told AP he brought wounded people to the hospital for emergency treatment. “Right now, over 200 people have been injured and are receiving care in the accident and emergency department,” Alkali said, adding, “While I could tell you so many people have died, to be honest, many lost their lives at the scene immediately after the bomb exploded.”
Mohammed Hassan, a member of a volunteer group that often assists security forces in fighting armed extremists, said he evacuated 10 bodies from the Post Office and Monday Markets. “Many victims were rushed to the emergency ward, but some died at the hospital. We’re in dire need of blood,” Hassan said, characterizing the attack as “one of the deadliest in Maiduguri in years.”
In a statement Monday, Borno Gov. Babagana Umara Zulum condemned the explosions. “My thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims and those injured as a result of the blast. The act is utterly condemnable, barbaric and inhumane,” Zulum said, calling on residents to remain calm, continue their usual activities, and report suspicious movement to security agencies.
For years, Nigeria has faced a complex security crisis involving multiple armed groups, particularly in the north. In Borno, which has been the epicenter of a 17-year struggle against extremist armed groups, attacks in Maiduguri have been less common in recent years after military operations, according to the AP report.