The Borno State Police Command has confirmed that at least 24 people were killed and several others injured in a suicide bombing carried out by a female terrorist in Konduga, Borno State.
The attack, it was gathered, occurred at about 10:00 p.m. on Friday night when the suicide bomber detonated an improvised explosive device (IED) at a local food joint where residents had gathered in large numbers to buy food.
The explosion, according to police sources, resulted in the fatal wounding of 24 persons, both male and female, while an unspecified number of others sustained varying degrees of injuries.
According to Zagazola Makama, the body of the suicide bomber was torn apart by the blast, with only the head recovered.
Following the incident, a joint team comprising Military and Police Explosive Ordnance Disposal Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (EOD-CBRN) units, Tactical Teams, Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF), and local hunters visited the scene.
The area was cordoned off and thoroughly searched for other potential explosive devices, but none were found. Normalcy has since been restored to the area.
The injured victims were evacuated to the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital (UMTH), where they are receiving treatment, while the corpses of the deceased were also deposited at the same hospital. Medical personnel on duty certified the dead victims.
The police said efforts are ongoing to profile the victims and release the corpses to their families for burial in accordance with religious rites.
Security has been strengthened across Konduga to forestall further attacks.