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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has condemned the suicide bomb blast in Borno State, promising to deal with troublemakers.
Eighteen people were killed on Saturday, July 29, 2024, when four suicide bombers set off improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in Gwoza, Borno State.
The attack, one of the deadliest reported in the state in recent months, injured more than 30 persons. The degree of injuries ranges from abdominal ruptures to skull and limb fractures.
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The Director-General of State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) Barkindo Saidu, said he witnessed the first blast.\
“In my presence, at about 3 pm, the first bomb blast in Gwoza occurred, detonated by a female suicide bomber in the midst of the marriage ceremony celebration,” he wrote in a situation report later in the day.
“It affected more than 30 persons with various levels of injuries and instant death. Some minutes later, another blast occurred around General Hospital.”
The wedding was held at Tashan Mararaba near the Fire Service in Gwoza town.
A survivor said the first bomber was carrying a baby on her back when she stormed the venue and detonated the IED.
As people gathered to bury those killed at the wedding, Saidu said a third bomber, a lady, detonated another IED with a lot of casualties.
While emergency officials were in the hospital coordinating the rescue mission, a fourth blast was set off by a female teenager.
“So far, 18 deaths comprise children, adult males, females, and pregnant women. 19 seriously injured were conveyed to Maiduguri in four ambulances,” Saidu said.
At the time he released the situation report, he said 23 were waiting for military escort “in the Medical Regimental Services (MRS) Clinic”.
The evacuation of the injured continued into the night with the SEMA DG, who was in Gwoza when the attacks occurred, coordinating the process from there.
He also said he had received a report of a suspected suicide bomber in Pulka but did not provide further details about that.
The military has imposed a curfew in Gwoza LGA in the wake of the attacks.
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Meanwhile, President Tinubu reacting to the incident in a statement issued by his spokesperson, Ajuri Ngelale on Sunday described it as a desperate act of terror.
“President Tinubu describes the attacks as desperate acts of terror and a clear manifestation of the pressure mounted against terrorists and the success achieved in degrading their capacity to launch offensives,” the statement read.
Tinubu said that the “purveyors of wanton violence shall have a certain encounter with justice and that these cowardly attacks are only but an isolated episode as his government will not allow the nation to slither into an era of fear, tears, sorrow, and blood.”
The Commander-in-Chief maintained that his administration is taking necessary measures to secure citizens, stressing that efforts will be redoubled to ensure that those who trouble the nation, dispatching precious lives, and disrupting law and order are completely removed.
Toeing a similar path, the United States Government condemned the attack, describing it as horrific.
“The United States condemns in the strongest possible terms the horrific attacks that took place in Gwoza, Borno State on June 29. These reprehensible acts of violence show a cruel and heartless disregard for human life,” the Mission said in a Sunday message.
“We offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those killed and wish a full recovery to the injured. These abhorrent attacks are a stark reminder of the ongoing threat posed by terrorism in the region.”
It also reiterated the Mission’s commitment to collaborate with the Nigerian government to defeat terrorism and bring the perpetrators of these heinous acts to justice.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Atiku Abubakar while reacting to the incident, charged the federal government not to allow the North-east region to slide back into a “theatre of terrorism and extreme violence.”
“It is unfortunate that much of the pushback that had been achieved against the Boko Haram terror sect is being cancelled,” Atiku posted on his X handle, blaming the federal government for laxity to “hold firmly on the frontline.”
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