At least 32 people, including soldiers were killed when an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) suspected to have been planted by Boko Haram terrorists exploded at a Nigeria-Cameroon border town, Gamboru Ngala on Monday.
Also, more than 35 others were injured in the explosion.
This was as armed men believed to be members of Boko Haram on Monday ambushed and attacked the convoy of the Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Maj.-Gen. Olusegun Adeniyi, at Jakana, Borno State.
A security source said the Gamboru Ngala explosion occurred in a market.
“It happened about 4p.m. at the local market in Gamboru Ngala, on a crowded bridge of Gamboru and Fotokol border towns. The towns are between Nigeria and the neighbouring Cameroon,” the source said.
A witness, Ahmad Musa, disclosed that dozens of people were injured in the attack.
He said: “I heard a loud sound of explosion and before I knew what was going on, dead bodies were already on the ground, many of them children. They were crying for help. It was pathetic.
“The incident, which happened on the Fotokol Bridge between Nigeria and Cameroon, about 4p.m., resulted in the death of many people. I personally counted 32 corpses on the ground, including bodies of Nigerian soldiers.”
Another resident, Mohammad Ali, described the attack as unfortunate.
He said: “Many were severely injured; mostly children and women. We took 35 persons to the hospital, but so many were injured. It was an unfortunate day and we were saddened about the attack. As you know, a lot of people used to move to and fro on the bridge.”
Despite the scale of this attack, Nigeria’s dictator Muhammadu Buhari has kept a deafening silence. Buhari and top Nigerian government officials have repeatedly affirmed that Boko Haram has been “technically” defeated.
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