Nigeria attacks
January 21, 2012
At least 150 people were confirmed dead in northern Nigeria on Saturday after a series of bombings in the nation's second-largest city, Kano.
The coordinated attacks on Friday evening targeted numerous locations, including police and immigration offices and a motor park. Responsibility has been claimed by a radical Islamist sect, Boko Haram.
"Ours is a campaign against the government, the law enforcement and the Christian Association of Nigeria, because they have slaughtered us," said Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau in a statement.
Nigeria's head of police, Hafiz Ringim, said an investigation would be conducted into what he described as "well-coordinated attacks."
Streets in the city of nine million were deserted on Saturday as a 24-hour curfew was imposed. The situation was described a "desperate," with hospitals struggling to treat the large numbers of people injured and the death toll expected to rise.
Police said eight buildings were attacked, including police and secret-service headquarters and three police stations. Shooting was reported to have continued until late into the night.
Attackers on cars and motorbikes
Witnesses the blasts were carried out by teenagers on motorbikes, although at one site the attack appeared to have been caused by a suicide bomber driving a car. Security officers were shot dead at immigration offices before attackers threw explosives.
Copies of a letter, apparently from Boko Haram, were distributed around the city. Written in the local Hausa language, they echoed the message that the attacks were retribution for police arrests and killings of members.
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has recently channeled resources into an emergency taskforce, increasing police raids on the homes and workplaces of suspected Boko Haram militants.
The Islamist group is calling for Sharia law to be introduced in the country, which is divided roughly equally in religious terms between Christians in the south and Muslims in the north.
The bombings are the worst in recent months and follow a series of attacks against churches at Christmas, which killed at least 40 people.
Author: Richard Connor (AP, dpa, Reuters)
Editor: Kyle James