A bomb attack on Biu’s main market in Borno State has claimed five lives and injured 10 others, eyewitnesses have said.

One of the eyewitnesses, Yusuf Gunda, a member of the youth vigilante group in the town, which is in the southern part of the troubled state, told our correspondent that a woman was caught trying to set up the explosive device very close to the market about 3.30p.m.

According to him, youths and traders around the area “were not too sure what she was trying to drop off, as such incidents were uncommon.”

However, he said the action was enough to arouse suspicion, he added: “and as they were asking her to carry what she had dropped off, the explosive device detonated and killed five persons including the woman.”

Gunda said ten other persons were injured in the explosion, adding that “the ten persons were taken to the Biu General Hospital to receive treatment.”

He revealed that though security agents swooped on the market immediately after the incident to ascertain the level of destruction, things soon went back to normal, as people who were initially apprehensive started going about their normal activities.

He said: “I cannot however confirm the number of those who died in the incident, as they were not brought here, but I learnt that they were five including the woman who was trying to plant the bomb.”

Several attempts to get the Public Relations Officer of the police in the state, Gideon Jibrin, were not successful as his mobile  phone was not reachable.

In other incidents in the North-east, Boko Haram insurgents bombed a police station in Yobe State, as the Islamists pressed on with attacks despite a multinational offensive targeting their strongholds, witnesses and security sources said.

Separately, an attempted suicide attack was foiled outside a political office elsewhere in Potiskum, raising fears of growing unrest in the run-up to Nigeria’s general elections, which have been postponed by six weeks.

Scores of militants armed with guns and explosives also stormed a police station in the town of Kanamma in Yobe State last Monday, multiple sources told AFP.
Details of the violence took days to emerge because of the poor phone network in the remote area.

“The terrorists overpowered our men and set the police station on fire before kidnapping the DPO (district police officer), whose body was later found in the bush,” said one senior officer, who requested anonymity.

Several other policemen were killed, he added.

That account was supported by Kanamma resident Maina Kachalla, who said the police station was bombed and burnt down.