Girl, 10, detonates bomb in Nigerian market in another suspected Boko Haram attack
A second female suicide bomber was caught and killed by an angry mob before she could do anything
A 10-year-old girl was used as a human bomb in a horrifying attack on a Nigerian food market thought to have been planned by jihadists.
The child detonated a bomb on New Year’s Eve in the city of Maiduguri before a second female suicide bomber was caught.
She was lynched by an angry mob before she could set off her own device.
One person was seriously injured, AFP reported, during the attack that targeted a crowd of people queuing for noodles.
This is the second sickening attack on civilians in a week, after two even younger girls aged between seven and eight detonated explosives in an attack which injured 19 people.
No group has yet to claim responsibility for the attack but experts think it could be the work of Boko Haram Islamists.
This group regularly uses women and young girls as suicide bombers on civilian targets.
Numerous people confirmed the girl was likely to be no older than 10.
Grema Usman, a witness, told AFP: “The girl walked towards the crowd but she blew up before she could reach her target.
“She died instantly, while one person was seriously hurt after he was hit by shrapnel.”
Victor Isuku, Borno state police spokesman confirmed the second bomber had been caught and killed by an angry mob.
Her bomb was safely detonated by security forces, he said.
Authorities blamed the attack on Boko Haram, whose seven-year insurgency has killed 20,000 people and displaced 2.6 million others. The conflict has spilled into Nigeria’s northern neighbours.
Saturday’s attack came a week after Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari said the jihadist group had been routed from Sambisa forest, its last stronghold in Borno state.
Previously the leader of Boko Haram recently called on supporters to “kill, slaughter, abduct … and detonate bombs everywhere”.
The chilling video was released by Abubakar Shekau released to dismiss reports by the Nigerian Government that the Islamic militant group had been crushed.
But in the new clip Shekau said “I am here, well and alive” and “the battle is just beginning”.
He added: “Kill all the infidels and detonate bombs everywhere. Yes. I want you to kill, slaughter and abduct.”
Schoolgirls kidnapped by the extremist group two years ago were reunited with their families for Christmas.
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