Eight people were killed Tuesday when a suicide bomber blew himself up outside a livestock market in northeast Nigeria, as Boko Haram violence escalated further after a period of relative calm.
The suicide bombing targeted a livestock market in a village in Adamawa state, where Islamist gunmen also shot dead three people and kidnapped seven women at the weekend.
Nigeria’s military declared Adamawa “cleared” in March as part of a four-nation fightback against the militants launched the previous month.
But the fresh violence underscored the persisting threat posed by Boko Haram, who are expected to step up hit-and-run attacks on civilians after being flushed out of their stronghold across northeast Nigeria.
The bombing happened outside a livestock market at about 1:15pm in the village of Garkida in Adamawa state, said state assembly lawmaker Jerry Kundusi and witness Abdullah Musa.
“We don’t know the identity of the assailant but it’s obvious it’s the work of Boko Haram insurgents,” said Kundusi.
Garkida is some 165 kilometres north of the state capital, Yola, and near the state border with Borno, which has been worst affected by the six years of violence. Kundusi said: “Nine people died in the attack (including the bomber) and 14 others had to be rushed to hospital.
“It was a lone bomber who blew himself up just outside the livestock market”. Musa said he was at home nearby when he heard what he described as “a huge blast”.
“When I rushed out I realised that it was an attack just outside the livestock market. Many people were injured and at least nine others were killed (including the bomber)”.
