Deadly blast rocks mosque in Nigeria’s Borno state, worshippers among casualties

Deadly mosque blast in Maiduguri

An explosion tore through a mosque in Maiduguri, northeastern Nigeria, on Wednesday, killing at least seven worshippers, witnesses and security sources told AFP.

No armed group immediately claimed responsibility for what anti-jihadist militia leader Babakura Kolo described as a suspected bombing.

Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state, has been at the centre of a long-running insurgency by Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province, though the city itself has not experienced a major attack in years.

The bomb went off inside a crowded mosque in the city’s Gamboru market as Muslim faithful gathered for evening prayers, witnesses said.

Malam Abuna Yusuf, one of the mosque’s leaders, put the death toll at eight, although officials have yet to release an official count. Kolo said seven were killed.

He added that the bomb was believed to have been placed inside the mosque and detonated midway through prayers, while some witnesses described it as a suicide bombing.

It was not immediately clear how many were injured. Witness Isa Musa Yusha'u told AFP: "I saw many victims being taken away for medical treatment."

Videos captured after the blast and seen by AFP showed a person covered in blood writhing on the ground, along with what appeared to be bodies covered by a sheet.

Deadly insurgency

Nigeria has been battling a jihadist insurgency since 2009 and the conflict has killed at least 40,000 and displaced around two million from their homes in the northeast, according to the UN.

Though the violence has waned since its peak a decade ago, it has spilt into neighbouring Niger, Chad and Cameroon.

And concerns are growing about a resurgence of violence in parts of the northeast, where insurgent groups remain capable of mounting deadly attacks despite years of sustained military operations.

Maiduguri itself -- once the scene of nightly gun battles and bombings -- has been calm in recent years, with the last major attack recorded in 2021.

But reminders of the conflict are never far off in the state capital, where major military operations are headquartered.

Military pick-ups lumber through town daily, their beds filled with soldiers whose helmets shield them from the hot afternoon sun.

Evening checkpoints are still in effect, even as markets that once closed in the early afternoon throng into the night.

Meanwhile, in the countryside, the insurgency continues to rage, with analysts warning of an uptick in jihadist violence this year.

(With AFP inputs)