Africa

Home page

Africa

Explosion rocks Nigeria’s restive city

02 August 2011 19:00 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. An early morning bomb explosion in a north eastern city of Maiduguri in Nigeria believed to have been planted by the dreaded Boko Haram radical sect sent residents scampering for safety, APA reports quoting Xinhua.
Military sources told Xinhua that the explosion which occurred at exactly 7:13 a.m. local time at Gomari Junction was planted beside a road sidewalk and had exploded before a military patrol vehicle passed the area.
"I was scared when I heard the explosion because I had just passed the area and I was about 100 meters away when the bomb went off. I was confused whether to proceed or jump out of my car," Chuks, a trader told Xinhua.
"Unfortunately, I just came back to the town on Monday having fled in the wake of persistent attacks. But I wanted to go and clean my shop this morning since all my boys refused to return," he added.
Spokesperson for the Joint Task Force (JTF) Lt. Colonel Hassan Mohammed confirmed the incident but said nobody was injured.
According to him, the explosive was planted by the Boko Haram men beside the pavement that divide the highway at Gomari Junction, adding that nobody died from the blast.
Lt. Col Mohammed told Xinhua that the sporadic gun shots that followed the blast were as a result of the attempts by the Boko Haram men to engage the JTF troops in a shoot out.
"The Boko Haram men started shooting at our men who went to the scene as soon as the bomb went off and we have to return fire immediately. That was what caused the sporadic gun shots people were hearing in the morning," he added.
The fundamentalists had laid a siege on the city of Maiduguri since June with incessant bomb explosions and killings, forcing residents to flee to other parts of the country believe to be safe.
A competent government official told Xinhua that a section of the sect is already considering the amnesty and dialogue proposal of the government, adding that talks have commenced with an independent body in the state to bring the Boko Haram men on round table.