[Graphic] 47 people killed in bombing outside Nigerian school; Boko Haram suspected

[jchima]

No fewer than 47 persons, mainly students, have been killed and 79 wounded Monday by a deadly suicide bombing outside a school in Yobe State in northern Nigeria, police said.

It was reported that the attacker was disguised as a student when he set off the explosion in a government boarding school in the town of Potiskum, police spokesman Emmanuel Ojukwu said.



"We suspect Boko Haram is behind the attack," Ojukwu said.
The explosion took place at 7:50 a.m. local time outside the principal's office, where students had gathered for a daily speech.
Source: Graphic 47 people killed in bombing outside Nigerian school Boko Haram suspected - eReporter

 

[waltky]

More Boko Haram crap...

Dozens Killed Following Blasts at Nigerian Mosque
November 29, 2014 ~ Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has vowed to "not leave any stone unturned" in tracking down the terrorists who attacked a mosque, killing more than 80 worshippers and wounding at least 100 others.

Jonathan issued a statement Saturday urging Nigerians "not to despair in this moment of great trial" in the nation's history, and "remain united to confront the common enemy." A series of explosions followed by gunfire outside the crowded central mosque in Kano struck just after the start of Friday prayers.

Witnesses say they saw scores of people wounded and feared dead after two bombs exploded in a courtyard outside Kano's Grand Mosque, and a third detonated nearby. Police arrived on the scene to confront an angry mob of youths yelling and brandishing sticks and stones. Police struggled to gain entrance to the mosque. A VOA reporter says the mood eased after that, as medical authorities tended to the wounded.

Nigerian police inspect the site of an explosion in Kano, Nigeria

The U.S. State Department called the attack "horrendous" and condemned it in the strongest terms. It said the United States stands with the Nigerian people in their struggle against violent extremism and the threat of terrorism, and affirms its ongoing commitment to work with all Nigerians to combat these atrocities. A spokesman for U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the U.N. chief "calls on authorities to swiftly bring the perpetrators to justice."

The mosque is associated with one of the country's most influential Muslim authorities, the emir of Kano, who recently called for Nigerians to take up arms against the militant group Boko Haram. The emir is currently out of the country. No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing in Nigeria's second largest city, but suspicion is likely to fall on Boko Haram, which has carried out similar attacks. Kano is a city of more than 3 million people in the northern part of Nigeria.

Dozens Killed Following Blasts at Nigerian Mosque

See also:

Nigerian Villagers Flee to Niger After Boko Haram Attack
November 28, 2014 — The UN refugee agency reports about 50 people were killed by Boko Haram insurgents in Damassak, a town in Nigeria’s Borno State, earlier this week. The UNHCR says at least 3,000 people have fled to the Diffa region in neighboring Niger in fear of their lives.

Dammasak reportedly was captured by Boko Haram four days ago. The town lies just a few kilometers from the Niger border. UNHCR staff in Niger’s Diffa region report thousands of Nigerians fleeing from Boko Haram are arriving in a state of panic and desperation. UN refugee spokesman Adrian Edwards said people are being pursued by the militants right up to the river banks. “It is extremely dangerous," said Edwards. "People are fleeing very quickly, very fast. A lot of women, a lot of elderly, a lot of children amongst those coming across…posing real difficulties. Families separated. Children lost from their parents. People with no belongings at all in many cases. So, this is, I suppose-it is battle displacement on the one hand, but with very serious consequences obviously for everyone affected.”

Young girls attend a math class in January 2014 at a school in Niger's Diffa region, where more than half of the students are Nigerians who have been displaced by fighting.

Damassak is the second large attack mounted by Boko Haram close to the Nigerian-Niger border in less than two months. The first attack on the Nigerian village of Malan Fatori on Oct. 5 prompted 1,000 people to flee. UNHCR aid workers in Diffa say people are still arriving in Niger from Nigeria. Most are waiting for boats to cross the river separating the two countries, while others try to swim across to safety. Edwards said local inhabitants report having seen some people drown. “The new arrivals are telling us that many civilians were killed during the attack on Damassak, especially young men, but the insurgents were also shooting at women and children," he said. "Some said they believe the attack was executed in reprisal for the enrollment of young men in self-defense groups, which have been formed to fight the insurgents.”

Damassak, NigeriaDamassak, Nigeria

According to the UNHCR, regular influxes of Nigerian refugees and returning Niger nationals are placing a heavy burden on Diffa, a remote and economically underdeveloped region. It said the remoteness of the region makes it very difficult for aid agencies to provide assistance to the growing number of refugees. Edwards said UNHCR, other agencies, and the local community are providing plastic sheeting and blankets to help people put up temporary shelters for protection against the night-time cold. The authorities in Niger say more than 100,000 people have fled to Niger since May 2013, when the Nigerian government declared a state of emergency in the northeastern states. It says more than 30,000 people have fled to the area from Boko Haram attacks in the past two months alone.

Nigerian Villagers Flee to Niger After Boko Haram Attack

 

[Mindlight]

They have now seized a Nigerian military base. Time to deal with these extremists but the Nigerian army do not seem to be up to the challenge

BBC News - Boko Haram seizes army base in Nigeria town of Baga

 

[mamooth]

Boko Haram Torches Nigerian Town of Baga 2 000 Missing Senator - NBC News
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More than 2,000 people are unaccounted for after radical Islamist sect Boko Haram torched more than 10 towns and villages in Nigeria
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It's one of those bad situations that we could only make worse. 173 million people in Nigeria, 5 times the size of Iraq. Intervening would result in 5 times as much quagmire. The US would have to reactivate the draft to even try.

Anyways, south Nigeria is where the oil is, and the problems are in the north, so Nigeria is not motivated to seriously address the issue. If the north can't vote due to the violence, that seals the win for southern candidates.

 

[ScienceRocks]

What is Boko goal? To enslave people to a sick religion?