Nigeria suicide bombers kills 18

  • 18/02/2018
Nigeria flag
President Muhammadu Buhari took office in 2015 with a promise to improve security for ordinary Nigerians. Photo credit: Getty

At least 18 people were killed when three suicide bombers blew themselves up in a fish market in northeast Nigeria.

Nobody has claimed responsibility for the attack in city of Maiduguri, capital of the state worst hit by the Boko Haram insurgency.

The use of suicide bombers in crowded areas is a hallmark of the Islamist militant group, which has killed more than 20,000 people since 2009 and forced over two million to flee their homes.

Damian Chukwu, police commissioner for Borno state, said the attack took place at a fish market about 20km from the centre of Maiduguri at 8pm local time on Friday.

"The three suicide bombers were killed and 18 other persons died. Twenty-two people were injured," said Mr Chukwu.

Suicide bombings have continued despite repeated assertions by the government and the military since 2016 to have defeated the Boko Haram insurgency, which aims to create an Islamic state in Nigeria's northeast.

President Muhammadu Buhari took office in 2015 with a promise to improve security for ordinary Nigerians.

But in addition to the jihadist insurgency, communal violence has plagued swathes of the country in the last few months, including a clash on Thursday that killed 18.

Reuters