Nigeria: Bomb blasts hit market near Kano city

A number of bomb blasts have hit near a market in the northern Nigerian city of Kano, according to reports.

It has not yet been confirmed who is behind the attack and number of injuries.

At least one of the bomb attacks was at the city's popular Kantin Kwari textile market, according to AFP.

"I heard a huge sound coming from the back of my shop along Unity Road. I just closed the shop and tried to leave because it's not safe," trader Nura Sadiq told AFP.

"Our men are on their way and I will brief you as soon as we get comprehensive details," said DCP Bagiga, a police spokesman in Kano, adding that he could not immediately confirm the nature of the blast at this stage.

A security source told OluFamous.Com confusion had swept the area with people running for their lives while others were putting their lives at risk by trying to access the macabre scene in search of their relatives.

The Kantin Kwari textile market is the largest market in northern Nigeria with thousands of traders coming from West African countries to do business there.

It comes after more than 100 people were killed and 135 injured in a Boko Haram bomb attack at Kano Central Mosque inside Emir's Palace in the ancient town on November 29.

The militant Islamist group, which was also behind a car bomb killed five people in Sabon, Kano, earlier this year, are fighting to overthrow the Nigerian government and create an Islamic state.

Some 2,000 people have been killed in attacks by Boko Haram militants so far this year.