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• Police confirm incident -Army, Police
From Timothy Olanrewaju, Maiduguri
Two suicide bombers believed to be Boko Haram blew up themselves in Maiduguri, Borno capital barely two weeks after similar incident occurred in same area.
Police confirmed the incident yesterday.
Mr. Victor Isuku, spokesman of the Borno Police Command told newsmen in Maiduguri that the bombers had targeted worshipers observing night prayers at the mosque before they were intercepted by vigilantes called Civilian JTF.
“The two suspects were strapped with Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) targeting worshipers at the mosque. But they were halted by the Civilian JTF before reaching their target forcing them to detonate their IEDs and killing themselves,’’ Isuku said.
Regardless, the bombers reportedly targeted Muslims worshippers observing the early morning prayers (subh) for the Ramadan at Sulemanti area, west of the capital city, residents said.
Some residents of Sulemanti told Daily Sun that the two male bombers were seen earlier under a Neem tree, unsure of their motive.
“I didn’t see them, I only heard the sound but, those who saw them said they were under the Neem tree. People thought they were probably going to the mosque nearby for prayers until a heavy sound came some minutes after 1:00am,” Hassan Aji, a resident of the area said.
Ahi also said the second explosion occurred about 25 minutes later as some worshippers in the mosque nearby were compelled to abandon their religious activities. There was no official confirmation from the military as at yesterday evening.
However, as at noon yesterday, the suicide scene was cordoned off by combined team of military personnel, police and Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) before the arrival of the police bomb disposal squad.
Two suicide bombers were also gunned down two weeks ago in the area by the civilian JTF.
Military authorities in the state have commended residents for their vigilance and collaboration, noting that the synergy between the military and civil populace was yielding results in the counter-insurgency operation. It urged residents to step up their collaboration to accelerate mission to end insurgency in the northeast. the North East.
