At least 18 people were killed and dozens injured in a series of suicide bombings in Gwoza, Borno State, northeastern Nigeria. The attacks, carried out by suspected female suicide bombers, targeted a wedding, a funeral, and a hospital.
The first explosion occurred around 3:45 PM on Saturday at a crowded motor park, where a woman carrying a baby detonated an improvised explosive device. Subsequent attacks targeted a hospital and a funeral for victims of the initial blast.
Borno State police spokesman Nahum Kenneth Daso confirmed the incidents, reporting that 19 seriously injured individuals were taken to Maiduguri, the regional capital, while 23 others awaited evacuation.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attacks. However, the region has been plagued by a 15-year insurgency led by Boko Haram and its splinter group, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), which frequently use female suicide bombers.
Gwoza, previously seized by Boko Haram in 2014 and recaptured by the Nigerian military in 2015, remains vulnerable to attacks. The ongoing violence has resulted in over 40,000 deaths and displaced around two million people in Nigeria’s northeast, with the conflict extending into neighboring Niger, Cameroon, and Chad.
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