A suicide bomber killed eight people and seriously injured 14 others on Tuesday when he detonated explosives strapped to his body at a livestock market in Garkida village in northeast Nigeria’s Adamawa state, witnesses and a lawmaker said.
The bomber blew himself up in the crowded livestock market around 1:15 p.m. while traders were conducting business in the weekly market.
“From the information I received from Garkida, the suicide attack killed nine people including the bomber while 14 others sustained serious injuries and are receiving treatment in hospital,” said Jerry Kundusi?, a member of the Adamawa state parliament for the region.
Garkida, in the Gombi district, is 120 kilometers from the state capital, Yola.
“Business was picking up when we heard a loud explosion coming from the gates of the market and we instantly knew we had been attacked,” cattle trader Buba Jada said.
“We rushed to the scene, where we met nine dead bodies including the bomber’s dismembered body and 14 people badly injured sprawled on the ground,” Jada said.
Although no one has claimed responsibility for the attack, Boko Haram Islamists, who have carried out a series of suicide attacks, are suspected.
“The bomber is yet to be identified but no one needs to be told it is the handiwork of Boko Haram,” Kundusi said.
Adamawa is one of three northeastern states hardest hit by Boko Haram violence. The Islamists have seized territory in the area in the past year.
In March, the Nigerian military said it had reclaimed all land seized by Boko Haram, ?but the insurgents continue to carry out sporadic raids in villages in the northern part of the state.
A Boko Haram raid on Saturday on Sabon Garin Hyembula village in nearby Madagali district left three dead. The attackers also kidnapped seven women and looted food stores in the village, according to local officials and fleeing residents.
