At least 18 dead in female suicide bombing in Nigeria

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — Female suicide bombers targeted a wedding, a funeral and a hospital in coordinated attacks in northern Nigeria, killing at least 18 people, local authorities said Sunday.

The first bomb detonated during a wedding celebration in the northeastern town of Gwoza, Barkindo Saidu, director general of the disaster management agency in Borno state, told reporters.

“Minutes later, another explosion occurred near the General Hospital,” Saidu said, and the third attacker at the funeral was disguised as a mourner. Among those killed were children and pregnant women. At least 30 others were injured, and Saidu said the injuries included abdominal fractures and skull fractures.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks. Borno state has been severely affected by the insurgency of the Islamist extremist group Boko Haram, which began in 2009.

In the past, Boko Haram has used women and girls in suicide attacks, raising suspicions that some of the attackers are among the many thousands of people the extremists have kidnapped over the years, including School children.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu described the attacks in a statement as “desperate acts of terrorism” and “an isolated incident.”

The uprising, which spread beyond the borders around Lake Chad, claimed the lives of over 35,000 people, displaced over 2.6 million people and caused a massive humanitarian crisis.

Boko Haramone branch of which is allied with the terrorist militia “Islamic State”, wants to establish an Islamic state in Nigeria, the West African oil giant with 170 million inhabitants, which is almost evenly divided into a predominantly Christian south and a predominantly Muslim north.

The renewed increase in suicide attacks in Borno has raised serious concerns about the security situation in the region.

The authorities imposed a curfew in the town. Gwoza is only a few kilometers from Chibok, where 276 schoolgirls were kidnapped in 2014. Almost 100 of the girls are still in captivity.

Since then, At least 1,500 students were kidnapped throughout Nigeria, as armed groups see this practice as a lucrative way to finance their criminal activities and take control of villages.