At least 26 people, including women and children, were killed on Monday in northeastern Nigeria after improvised explosive devices (IEDs) detonated on a busy road near the town of Gamboru in Borno State, police confirmed on Tuesday.
According to police spokesperson Nahum Daso, multiple IEDs planted along the Rann-Gamboru road tore through several civilian vehicles, including a Toyota pickup truck carrying farmers and traders. Three others were seriously injured and rushed to nearby medical facilities.
The Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), an affiliate of the Islamic State group, claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement released on Telegram. ISWAP, which broke away from Boko Haram in 2016, has carried out a string of deadly attacks in the region, often targeting military personnel and civilians.
Security forces have since secured the area and launched clearance operations, Daso said.
Abba Modu, a member of the Civilian Joint Task Force, stated the IEDs may have been aimed at security operatives who frequently patrol the route. “Terrorists often bury IEDs under sand or in potholes to ambush military convoys,” he added.
This latest incident comes amid worsening insecurity in Nigeria’s northeast, where over 35,000 people have died and more than 2 million have been displaced since 2009, according to the United Nations.
In response, the Nigerian military has appointed Maj. Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar as the new commander of the anti-insurgency operation in the region, signaling a renewed push to combat the decade-long Islamist insurgency.
