Yemi Adebowale
About 20 people were killed and 90 wounded by a bomb explosion in a mosque in the northern Nigerian city of Maiduguri on Monday, the state emergency agency NEMA said.
The blast came a day after the army fought Boko Haram militants west of Maiduguri, capital of Borno state and birthplace of their campaign to create an Islamic state in the northeast of Africa’s most populous country.
Although the figure is yet to be confirmed, the explosions, according to witnesses, were detonated by suspected teenage girls.
The Nigerian army had said on Sunday that normalcy had returned to the city after suicide bombers intended to carry out attacks.
READ: Fierce Fighting Between Nigerian Army and Boko Haram Over Maiduguri
A military statement said troops intercepted the suspects before they could strike the Borno State capital, which has borne the biggest brunt of such attacks by Boko Haram.
“Normalcy has been restored to the general area and the public is please advised to go about their normal businesses and social activities.
“However, it is important to maintain more vigilance and security consciousness,” Colonel Mustapha Anka, Media Co-ordinator of Operation Lafiya Dole, said.
President Buhari said during a BBC interviews that Nigeria had “technically won the war” against Boko Haram.
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