The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Suicide bombings

  • Suicide bombings: Shekau trying to resell himself, says anti terrorism group

    The Coalition Against Terrorism (CAT) has described the new video released by factional Boko Haram leader, Abubakar Shekau as a desperate attempt to convince his sponsors that his group is still relevant for business ahead of 2019 general elections.
    The group at a press conference in Kaduna said the video shows Shekau is aware that the dragnet for his capture is closing in and is now trying to reenact a psychological gimmick that had worked for him under different circumstances in the past to prove he’s still relevant.
    Coordinator of the group, Shehu  Garuba said the renewed directive to troops under the Mobile Strike Teams (MSTs) to hunt down Boko Haram leader in line with the 40 days ultimatum for his capture is welcome saying the groups in the coalition believe the renewed military push to capture Shekau would  defeat suicide bombing in the North east.
    Garuba said the group’s confidence in the ability of the military to fish out Shekau in few days time is unwavering.
    “Our hope is that the troops would accelerate their mission to smoke the Boko Haram leader out given the new low to which his depravity has sunken. Boko Haram went underground to brainwash parents into coercing their girl children into becoming suicide bombers. The military must focus on the task at hand and not be distracted by this antic of the terrorists and those behind them. It takes the worst form of perversion to recruit young girls and innocent women to die for other people’s pecuniary reasons.
    “In the face of such disparately unconventional circumstances, we commend the achievements of the Nigerian military, which has done well in fighting, degrading and defeating the militant wing of the terror group. We hail the sacrifices of those that have laid down their lives to procure the measure of peace in the areas where Boko Haram once peddle terror on a large scale,” he said.
    The coalition tasked the military to move the war on terrorism from the fighters and commanders of the group to going after the political assets and platforms of the insurgents saying Nigerians are in full support of any strategy that would further weaken the terrorists hence the need to go after its economic and financial contacts.
    Garuba said all entities that pose as NGOs to support the terrorists and provide cover for them should also be investigated while the combination of all these should  prepare the grounds for implementation of Boko Haram strategies.
    “Nigerian authorities must approach internet giants like Google, Facebook, Twitter and others to secure a commitment to block pro-terrorists contents like the video released by Shekau.
    “The social media sites must also be compelled to block accounts that promote Boko Haram’s activities. These organizations already comply with such requests from several countries. They either comply or are denied the opportunity to do business in Nigeria,” he stated.
    The coalition also canvassed the modification of the protocols at military checkpoints to stop exempting any vehicle from search until such a time that Abubakar Shekau and other leading Boko Haram figures have been captured.
    “This implies that all vehicles must be searched at these checkpoints even when they are diplomatic cars, convoys of government officials, aid caravans and even vehicles of the various military services.
    “Our thinking is that the desperation of the terrorists will make them to become more ingenious in attempting to evade detection as troops close in on them. Their easiest escape would be in vehicle that would not be strictly scrutinized. Their ability to cross geographical areas could only have been possible by hitching rides in cars that enjoy the courtesy of not needing to be screened,” he said.
    The group appealed to the international agencies and politicians in the region to not only cooperate when such measure is introduced by the military but champion the stepping up of vehicular search adding that the military must commit to not criminalizing without thorough investigation any organization or politician whose vehicle is found to be conveying suspected terrorists.
    He said, ‘Community, traditional and religious leaders are needed to prevail on people to stop conscripting their children, especially the girl child, as suicide bombers. Nothing on earth justifies anyone to bear and raise an offspring only to sentence the child to death in the most horrible manner.
    The cooperation of everyone is needed to end this insanity of terrorism. We must join hands together as a people to fight Boko Haram.
  • Suicide bombings will end soon – Army

    Suicide bombings will end soon – Army

    The Nigerian Army on Wednesday assured that the recent spate of suicide bombings in Maiduguri would soon be a thing of the past.

    Maj.-Gen. Lucky Irabor, the Theater Commander of the Operation Lafiya Dole stated this while briefing newsmen in Maiduguri.

    Irabor stated that the army had put in place mechanism to end the bombings.

    “I am delighted to be with you again this afternoon to acquaint you with developments within the theater of operation. The troops of Operation Lafiya Dole have continued with the ongoing operations to clear the remnants of Boko Haram Terrorists.

    “Since our last interaction, our troops have conducted many operations with immense successes,’’ he said.

    Irabor said that the army had been able to minimise  impact of the bombings on the public.

    “The impact of recent bombings in Maiduguri, though sad and unfortunate, was minimal due to the alertness of troops and other security agencies.

    “Apart from the one wherein two Civilian JTF personnel were killed and some others wounded, only the terrorists died, while one was captured alive.

    “The captured suicide bomber is assisting in the investigation into cases of suicide bombings.’’

    He said that the continued bombings by the terrorists were a sign of weakness.

    According to him, the incidents are only indicative of a weakened and defeated Boko Haram terrorists, their ignoble adventure is destined to fail totally,’’ Irabor said.

    He advised members of the public to be more conscious and alert to their environment.

    “I wish to remind the general public to be more alert and security conscious with their environment, especially when a strange face comes around.

    “I also commiserate with all the victims of the recent suicide bombings by terrorists within the theatre. We shall continue to work to ensure the safety of lives of every citizen, ” Irabor said.

    He urged Boko Haram remnants to take advantage of a window of opportunity by surrendering their arms.

    “Let me once again use this medium to remind the remnants of Boko Haram that their miserable days are numbered because their future is going to be disastrous if they fail to surrender and lay down their arms.

    “Let me therefore, encourage them to take advantage of this window of opportunity now to surrender as failure to do so would be hugely regretted,” Irabor said.

  • 10 dead in Yobe’s twin Boko Haram suicide bombings

    10 dead in Yobe’s twin Boko Haram suicide bombings

    •Sect kills 23 in Chadian capital

    Ten people were killed yesterday in twin suicide bombings in Potiskum, Yobe State’s commercial capital.

    The attacks targeted two locations at Dorowa and a Vigilante Office on Nangare/ Gashua Road.

    A hospital source said on telephone that 10 people were confirmed dead at the Potiskum General Hospital.  Five badly injured people were on admission.

    Abdullahi Shehu , a local vigilante who survived the attack, said:  ”The suicide bomber sneaked into our office complex while we were holding a meeting. He came, sat down and before anybody could notice his presence, he triggered off his explosive-ridden body killing seven members of the group, including leaders.”

    A hospital source from the General Hospital Potiskum, who was part of the rescue team, added : “We have 10 dead people at the Accident and Emergency Ward as I talk to you now. There are five people on admission, two female and three male. Eight men and two women died.”

    Sarki Abdullahi who sells recharge cards  close to  the Vigilante office described the sound of the explosion as “frightening”, saying it threw them off their feet.

    ”I heard a loud sound but I did not know where it came from. It shook the whole of the area. Everyone was confused. Some people even fell to the ground;  goods were scattered,” Abdullahi said.

    A second blast was outside a tavern and brothel, the French News Agency, AFP said.

    There was no immediate claim of responsibility but Potiskum has been hit repeatedly by Boko Haram in its six-year insurgency.

    Explaining the first blast further, a witness told AFP: “We suspected he was a thief and then when he couldn’t explain how he came about the things that were found on him, we took him to our office for interrogation.”

    “But we didn’t know he had explosives on him. He detonated the explosives and we lost eight men, including our commander,” said the vigilante, who asked not to be named for his own safety.

    A police source in Potiskum said: “We took eight dead bodies of the vigilante men to the hospital and the remains of the suicide bomber,” he said.

    The second blast happened moments later in the Dorawa,  Potiskum at an open air tavern and brothel that had previously been hit by the Islamists.

    The police source said a man suspected to be a bomber was chased by a mob, but he set off his explosives before he was caught.

    “Two people have been confirmed dead,” he added.

    Boko Haram are keen to prove they are not a spent force despite a four-nation military offensive that has run them out of captured towns and villages since February.

    The use of improvised explosive devices and suicide bombings has increased since May 29, when President Muhammadu Buhari took office vowing to crush the militants.

    At least 162 people have been killed in some 17 separate attacks in that period, according to AFP reporting.

    Yobe Police spokesman Toyin Gbadegeshin confirmed the explosions to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

    Gbadegeshin said one of the bombers targeted the vigilante office, killing seven persons. Two others died in the second explosion, which occurred at Dorowa Ward in the town.

    “At about 12.25hrs, two suicide bombers struck at Dorowa at the vigilante office and near Lara filling station, killing Ado Kwamanda and six of his men.”

    “Two people, including the bomber, died in the second attack,” he said.

    NAN recalls that suspected insurgents attacked Babangida, headquarters of Tarmuwa Local Government Area on Sunday, looted food stuff and burnt public and private structures, including stores.

  • 27 die in Boko Haram bus stations suicide bombings

    27 die in Boko Haram bus stations suicide bombings

    Kano, Yobe hit

    Jonathan attacks sect

    APC: govt to blame

    The Boko Haram bloodletting continued yesterday with suicide bombings in the North’s commercial capital, Kano and Potiskum, Yobe State’s biggest town.

    No fewer than 27 people died at bus stations in the cities, giving an indication of a co-ordinated action.

    Although no group has claimed responsibility for the attacks, the manner of the blasts point in the direction of Boko Haram.

    President Goodluck Jonathan criticised Boko Haram for what he described as its focus on “soft targets”, saying the latest action is “an act of a sect facing extinction”.

    Twelve persons were killed in the Kano blast. Five others were injured as the explosion rocked the Kano Line Motor Park at Kofar Nassarawa. Fifteen died in Potiskum.

    At about 3.15pm, three suspected suicide bombers walked into the park, disguising as passengers.

    It was gathered that the suspected bombers believed to be aged between 17 and 18, carried bags and mixed freely with passengers travelling to various destinations.

    An eyewitness account said two of the suicide bombers stood by the side of an Urvan bus loading passengers and detonated explosives. Ten passengers were burnt to death.

    The third suspected suicide bomber reportedly escaped during the pandemonium that followed the blast.

    Three vehicles were burnt.

    Kano State Commissioner of Police Idris Ibrahim, speaking at the blast site, said: “As you can see, it involves three vehicles – a Sharon, a bus and a golf car. We estimated that about 12 people died. It seems that the two suicide bombers came in that Sharon car as passengers from outside the city.

    “As indicated, investigation is ongoing.”

    An eyewitness, Bello Ibrahim, said: At exactly3:05pm, I greeted some of the people, including the man writing passengers’ manifest. Shortly after, I heard a deafening sound. I saw   bodies being roasted.

    “I saw the two suspected suicide bombers. They were strange faces, young boys between 17 and 18. Among the dead were the man writing the manifest of passengers and a bread seller. There were up to 10 dead.

    Another suicide attack in Potiskum, Yobe state’s commercial city, killed 15 people. No fewer than 33 were injured, eyewitnesses said.

    Yesterday’s was the third successive attack in Potiskum within one week.

    Last year, members of a Muslim sect on procession were attacked. Many died.

    The bomb was reportedly detonated by a woman at the roadside Tashan Dan Borno Motor Park along Kano Road.

    Hospital sources said 15 people died while some of the injured were transferred to the Federal Medical Centre, Nguru for better attention.

    An eyewitness account said the bomber came into the bus station and went straight into the Kano-bound Toyota bus before blowing herself up, throwing the entire vicinity into confusion after the bang.

    Speaking on how the blast was carried out, an official of the National Road Transport Workers Union (NURTW) said the vehicle was getting set for take-off, when the car went into flames.

    “The loaders were getting ready to collect money from passengers because the motor was about to filled when we heard a loud sound and the car went up in flames,” he said.

    Another witness said the entire vicinity was thrown into confusion with the loud sound from the explosion.

    In a statement yesterday by his Special Adviser of Media, Dr. Reuben Abati, President Goodluck Jonathan condemned “the reversion by the terrorist group, Boko Haram to the callous bombing of soft targets in parts of Nigeria in the wake of the ongoing rapid recovery by gallant Nigerian troops and their multinational allies of areas formerly controlled by the sect.

    “President Jonathan commiserates with all families who have lost loved ones in the bombings which continued today with attacks on Kano and Potiskum.

    “The President shares the grief of all the bereaved families and is deeply saddened by the continued loss of many innocent lives at the hands of misguided and desperate fanatics who are now feeling the heat of the intense counter–insurgency operation by the Nigerian Armed Forces.

    “The President assures all Nigerians and the people of the North-Eastern states in particular that the days of mourning victims of incessant terrorist attacks in the country will soon be over as the tide has now definitely turned against Boko Haram.

    “President Jonathan further assures the people of Nigeria that the gallant, courageous and patriotic officers and men of the Nigerian Armed Forces, supported with new platforms, equipment and logistics provided by the Federal Government will carry the ongoing operations against the terrorists through to a successful conclusion in the shortest possible time.

    “He affirms that his administration will continue to take all necessary action to guarantee the success of ongoing military operations against the terrorist group and drastically reduce its ability to take and hold territory or recruit, groom and brainwash young persons to undertake suicide bombing attacks on soft targets.”

  • Women dropping hijab over female suicide bombings

    Women dropping hijab over female suicide bombings

    Women in Kano are abandoning their traditional religious dress after a spate of suicide bombings by young girls with explosives under their hijab.

    The commercial city was hit last month by four separate attacks involving teenage girls in the Muslim dress, leaving at least nine people dead and scores more injured.

    Although no one has claimed responsibility for the bombings, fingers have been pointed at Boko Haram, the Islamist militants blamed for a string of attacks on the city.

    But the bombings have cast fear and suspicion on young women wearing the loose clothing, prompting many to dress differently.

     “I no longer wear my hijab because people now see any young woman in hijab as a potential suicide bomber because of the recent incidents”, said 17-year old Hajara Musa.

     “I now put on my shawl [headscarf] when I go out pending the time the city gets over the trauma of this frightening trend”, the fashion design apprentice told AFP.

     Musa said she was recently barred from entering a shopping mall while dressed in a hijab, which covers the hair, neck and upper body, despite agreeing to be frisked.

    “I was turned away because of my hijab, which I found very disturbing”, she added.

    Increased security

     The hijab is a common sight in conservative Kano, an ancient seat of Islamic learning where it has become a convention of modesty for women leaving their homes or meeting men who are not relatives.

    Many women wear the hijab with a traditional cloth wrapper that goes past their knees.

    Adama Habibu, aged 21, said she preferred to wear the hijab but the recent bombings had forced her to stop to avoid attracting unnecessary attention.

    “Wherever a young woman in hijab goes people keep their distance from her out of fear she could be a suicide bomber”, said Habibu, a student at Kano State Polytechnic, where a suicide blast on July 30 killed six people and injured 20 others.

    The blasts, one of which targeted an upmarket shopping mall, have prompted increased security around businesses, with more police visible around public buildings and frequent patrols.

     Shopping malls in the city have also deployed more security guards at their entrances who sweep shoppers with hand-held metal detectors and peer through handbags for explosives.

    “I have stopped carrying a handbag around because of the suspicion it raises. I now carry a small purse wherever I go”, said another Kano resident, Hafsat Yaya, who declined to give her age.

     Men afraid

     Men in the city also say they are more wary of young women in the hijab, said resident Bala Dawud.

    “I shudder with fear when I find myself next to a young woman in hijab because she could be a suicide bomber”, he added.

    He recalled how a crowd which queued up at a cash machine melted away when a hijab-wearing woman joined the queue and asked if it was working.

    “As soon as she was told yes, she pulled out her mobile phone and called someone, telling him she had found a machine dispensing cash and before you knew it the whole crowd dispersed, leaving the woman alone”, Dawud said.

    Women wearing niqab, which covers the whole face except the eyes, draw even more suspicion, said resident Samaila Abdussalam.

    Boko Haram, which wants to create a hard-line Islamic state in northern Nigeria, is blamed for killing more than 10 000 people since 2009 and their extreme tactics have been denounced worldwide.

     In April, they kidnapped 276 girls from a secondary school in northeast Nigeria, triggering global outrage. A total of 219 are still being held.

     And the new tactic of employing young women and girls as bombers has sharpened the concern and outrage.

    On 30 July, police in northern Katsina state arrested a 10-year-old girl with explosives strapped to her body.

    A security source involved in forensic analysis of the Kano blasts cautioned residents against “hasty generalisation”.

     “From our preliminary findings, all the female suicide bombers were between 14 and 16 years which gives an idea of the age group of the bombers”, the source said.

    “We believe the explosives were remotely detonated which means the girls were sent under duress. So, people should be wary of young women who look nervous or fidgety in a crowd.”

  • Fresh twist

    Fresh twist

    The bombing of Kano’s luxury bus park may have introduced an ethnic hue to the activities of Islamist terrorists

    A fresh twist may have been added to the terrorism tendencies of the Islamists in the north of Nigeria. Seemingly unrelenting in their quest to inflict maximum damage to the polity, they may have gone one step clear of the authorities by playing the ethnic card; trying to incite one group against the other in a bid to escalate the crisis. This may be the thinking of the sect which bombed the New Luxury Bus Park in Sabon Gari, Kano, last Monday. Though no group has owned up to perpetrating the massive explosions that devastated the large park, it has all the trappings of the Boko Haram group.

    The suicide bombings, according to reports, had happened at about 4.30 pm when a few luxury buses had been fully loaded for the onward night journey to Abuja, Port Harcourt, Onitsha and other parts of the east. One of the bombers who was said to have driven into the park in a Volkswagon Golf car, pretended to be a passenger and pulled up right in front of the buses. As the bus stewards crowded the car to canvass the ‘passengers’, the explosion went off; another one was said to have gone off in seconds and all hell was let loose in the park.

    Some of the luxury buses in the park traded by the name, Gobison, Blessed Chimezie, Ezenwata and New Tarzan; some of the buses are said to be brand new and at least one was reported to have been fully loaded, ready to leave the park. Others were in various stages of loading. No fewer than 75 people may have died almost immediately, especially those seated in the badly charred buses. About twice that number may have been injured considering the size of the park and the fact that it was at its peak. Of course, the damages in goods and even cash will remain incalculable because the victims were mainly traders who were set on night journeys to either buy goods or sell their wares. Both the luxury buses and a good number of the travellers were suspected to be Igbo, the park being their hub.

    There are strong reasons to believe that the bombers did not hit the Luxury Bus Park by accident or by random selection. It seems a well thought-out and premeditated attack designed to score a certain point. We think the attackers were trying to ‘ethnicise’ their operation in other to provoke a spontaneous chain of retaliations across the country. With such a result, they would have set the country on a violent bloodletting spin whose end portends dire consequences.

    Again and again, we condemn the dastardly and senseless killing of innocent people who have not done any harm to the Boko Haram sect or any sect for that matter. No religion preaches the hateful slaughtering of fellow human beings as witnessed in Kano last Monday and as have been carried out in the north of Nigeria in the last two years. As we write, we, and we bet, most Nigerians do not know for sure, what grieves the Islamist terrorists. Neither have they stated coherently, their demands from the Nigerian state or even the people. Are we to assume that the mission of the Islamists and their backers is to ensure the willful destruction of Nigeria; is it possible that these criminal acts are being enacted by foreigners intent on breaking up the country?

    We also restate, as we have done so many times before, that the Federal Government has not done well in combating the incipient terrorism that has been playing out in the last two years. Neither political solution nor security efforts has been seen to be carefully thought- out and carried out. For instance, we expect that Nigeria’s security agencies would have ramped up to be among the best in the world today, especially as concerns counter-terrorism and intelligence gathering. We expect that there ought to have been some form of security ‘cover’ for some areas of our major cities which would ensure that even when a terrorist slips through the net, it would be easy to track his trajectory and pre-impact manoeuvres.

    But we fear that our security agencies seem to have remained the same rumbustious bunches of gun-wielding people. We aver that security today is more a mind game conducted on hitech and electronic platforms. We have also canvassed several times that the president must also relentlessly work on the political solution. There is dire need for rapprochement; for the deliberate slaking of the current blood- thirstiness and a show of goodwill and generosity instead of hardening of stances.

    We commend the governors of the south east states, Igbo monarchs and some elite who seemingly saw through the bait of Monday’s bombings and called for restraint. While we commend their forbearance in the face of extreme provocation, we call on the federal and Kano State governments to move quickly to assuage the pains and losses of the victims. And to all Nigerian everywhere, we urge eternal vigilance.

  • Christmas: Fear of bombing in Churches

    Christmas: Fear of bombing in Churches

    REUTERS – Kneeling over a dusty grave on the outskirts of Nigeria’s capital, Abuja, 16-year old Hope Ehiawaguan says a prayer, lays down flowers and tearfully tells her brother she loves him.

    He was one of 44 killed on Christmas Day last year when a member of Islamist sect Boko Haram rammed a car packed with explosives into the gates of St Theresa’s Church in Madalla, a satellite town 25 miles from the center of Abuja.

    Boko Haram has killed hundreds in its campaign to impose sharia law in northern Nigeria and is the biggest threat to stability in the country.

    Two other churches were bombed that day and on Christmas Eve 2010 over 40 people were killed in similar attacks.

    This Christmas, the police and military are expecting more trouble in the north. They’ve ordered security to be tightened, people’s movement restricted and churches to be guarded.

    But such is the commitment to religion in a country with Africa’s largest Christian population that millions of people will pack out thousands of churches in the coming days. It is impossible to protect everyone, security experts say.

    “I feel safe,” Ehiawaguan says with uncertainty, when asked if she will come to church on December 25 this year.

    “Not because of security here … because we have a greater security in heaven,” she says, wiping away her tears.

    The blast in Madalla killed several people on the street and pulled down the church roof, condemning many of those trapped inside the burning building, including a seven-month old boy.

    A plaque listing the names of the members of the church who were killed has been placed above their graves. The twisted metal of the cars destroyed in the blast is still there.

    “I only pray to God to give them a heart,” Ehiawaguan says, when asked about her brother’s killers.

    Security experts believe Boko Haram is targeting worshippers to spark a religious conflict in a country of 160 million people split roughly equally between Christians and Muslims.

    The sect has also targeted Mosques in the past and assassinated Imams who have questioned its insurgency.

    In the group’s stronghold in the northeast, where most of its attacks occur, Muslims are equally at threat as Christians.

    The fear for many is that more Christmas Day attacks could spark the sort of tit-for-tat sectarian violence between the mostly Muslim north and largely Christian south, which has claimed thousands of lives in the past decade.

    “We have always insisted that Christians should not retaliate,” said Sam Kraakevik Kujiyat, chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Kaduna State, one of the areas worst hit by inter-religious violence in recent years.

    “But there is fear … we know not everyone who says he is a Christian acts like one.”

    Churches were emptier than usual on Sunday in Kano and Kaduna, local residents said.

    Despite bolstered security in cities across the north, dual suicide bombers attacked the offices of mobile phone operators India’s Airtel and South Africa’s MTN in Kano on Saturday.

    The bombers died but no civilians were killed.

    No one took responsibility for the attacks but Boko Haram has targeted phone firms before because they say the companies help the security forces catch their members.

    At least 2,800 people have died in fighting in the largely Muslim north since Boko Haram launched an uprising against the government in 2009, watchdog Human Rights Watch said.

    Boko Haram has showed since its insurgency intensified more than two years ago that it can find weaknesses in defenses.

    “One faction of Boko Haram has made several attempts to provoke violence between Christians and Muslims,” said Peter Sharwood Smith, Nigeria head of security firm Drum Cussac.

    “Unfortunately, I think it is very possible we may see attacks of this type (Church bombings) again.”

    Boko Haram is not the only threat in northern Nigeria.

    Islamist Group called Ansaru, known to have ties with Boko Haram, has risen in prominence in recent weeks. It claimed an attack on a major police barracks in Abuja last month, where it said hundreds of prisoners were released.

    The group said on Saturday that it was behind the kidnapping of a French national last week and it has been labeled a “terrorist group” by Britain.

     

  • Two killed in Bahrain explosions

    Two foreign workers have been killed and a third seriously injured by bomb blasts in Bahrain, officials told the BBC.

    Police said there were five explosions caused by home-made devices in two areas of the capital Manama on Monday.

    One of the men died at the scene when he kicked a device in Gudaibiya. The second died in hospital after being injured by an explosion near a cinema.

    A third explosion in Adliya injured another man working as a cleaner. Officials said the victims were Asian.

    Their nationalities are not known, but the biggest expatriate communities in Bahrain are Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi.

    The head of Capital Governorate Police urged all residents of Bahrain not to touch strange objects and to notify the authorities if they saw one.

    An investigation into who caused the blasts is under way.