At least 60 people have been killed in bomb blasts that hit two different parts of northeastern Nigeria in less than 24 hours, officials said.
The deadly attacks struck a region where violence blamed on the Islamic militant group Boko Haram has killed hundreds of people in recent weeks.
On Thursday, at least 48 people were killed and 58 others were wounded in two simultaneous bombings that ripped through a market in the city of Gombe, capital of Gombe state, a Red Cross official said.
One of the blasts was caused by a female suicide bomber, the other by a bomb hidden at the market, the official said.
The following morning, two suicide bombers killed at least 12 people in the northeastern Nigerian town of Damaturu, in Yobe state, police said.
The attackers, who were also killed in the blasts, struck near a Muslim prayer ground, said police spokesman Gbadegesin Joshua Toyin. He added that the number of people wounded isn’t clear yet.
No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attacks. But Boko Haram terrorists have previously carried out suicide and bombing attacks on bus stations and markets in Gombe and other northern cities.
Damaturu, which is about 185 kilometers (115 miles) northeast of Gombe, has repeatedly found itself the target of attacks linked to Boko Haram in the past.
Earlier this week, gunmen barricaded a highway that links Damaturu to another town and killed more than 20 motorists, a lawmaker said.
Boko Haram, which has pledged allegiance to the Islamist extremist group ISIS, appears to have intensified its campaign of brutal violence in northern and central Nigeria recently.
The Nigerian military has been unable to put a stop to the frequent raids and bombings in the region.
Boko Haram has been leading a ruthless, deadly insurgency for more than a decade, pushing to bring an extreme version of Islamic law, or Sharia, to the masses.
The government of Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari — who took office earlier this year, pledging to step up the fight against the terrorist group — said recently it would be open to talks with the militants at some stage.
