Nigeria: 27 killed in second bomb blast at a mosque

A bomb has been detonated at a mosque in Yola, northeast Nigeria on 23 October, killing 27 people and injuring scores more. The attack came just hours after a bomb exploded at a mosque in Maiduguri as worshippers gathered for the morning prayer.

"So far we have 27 dead and 96 injured," NEMA's co-ordinator, Sa'ad Bello, told AFP. The explosion occurred at about 2:00pm (1:00pm GMT) at the newly inaugurated mosque, Jambutu Juma'at in the Adamawa state capital. It is not yet clear whether the blast was a suicide bombing, or whether the device had been concealed in the place of worship.

One volunteer, who asked to remain anonymous said: "This mosque was nearly built and this was the first prayers in it. While worshippers had risen for the prayers to start after the sermon by the imam, there was a huge blast in the premises.

"There was confusion and dozens of worshippers lay on the ground in blood. We are still sifting through the victims to separate the dead from the injured. We're talking of scores of people dead and injured."

Bello said: "At the (Adamawa) State Specialist Hospital we have 18 dead bodies and 50 injured. At the Federal Medical Centre, we have nine dead and 46 injured." He added: "Most of the injured are now in a stable condition and have been moved to the wards. Only a few remain in the emergency section. "The injuries include fractures, burns and fissures (cuts)."

The attack followed an earlier bombing at a mosque in Maiduguri, capital of the restive Borno state in northern Nigeria. At least 28 people died in the explosion and 20 others were wounded.

No group has claimed responsibility for either of the attacks, but suspicion has fallen on Islamist organisation Boko Haram, despite Yola being seen as a relatively safe area from insurgency attacks. In stark contrast, Maiduguri has been hit by attacks on a near weekly basis.

Since 2009, Boko Haram has killed at least 17,000 people, forcing a regional task force comprising Nigeria, Niger, Chad, Cameroon and Benin to tackle the militant group. Earlier this month, US President Barack Obama announced a deployment of 300 US troops to Cameroon to carry out airborne intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations in the battle against Boko Haram.