Dozens killed in Nigeria bomb blasts

At least 27 killed and 60 wounded in bomb attacks at a market and bus station in northeast Nigeria.

At least 27 people have been killed and 60 wounded following two bomb attacks at a market and bus station in northeast Nigeria.

A massive explosion rocked a market in Bauchi on Monday, setting the entire area ablaze as rescue workers struggled to contain the fire.

Al Jazeera’s Ahmed Idris, reporting from Abuja, said the attack appears to have been designed to maximize casualties targeting traders as they were leaving the market.

“At least seven people have been killed according to health officials and the entire market is up in flames,” he said.

Haruna Mohammed, police spokesman for Bauchi state said 19 people were also wounded, the Reuters news agency reported.

Earlier on Monday, another explosion killed at least 20 people at a bus station in Gombe city, not far away from Bauchi.

“There was an explosion at the Dukku motor park. The Red Cross mobilised with 20 body bags and they have all been exhausted. We are still looking for more bodies among the carnage,” said Abubakar Yakubu, the Red Cross secretary for Gombe state.

Those killed were “burned beyond recognition,” Yakubu said.

The bomb was planted near a bus that was parked and filling up with passengers, said Mato Yakubu of the National Orientation Agency, a government body responsible for the media.

No group has claimed responsibility yet for the attack, but Boko Haram has claimed a number of attacks at bus stations, often targeting people who are heading to Nigeria’s mainly Christian south.

According to the Council on Foreign Relations think tank, violence in the country’s northeast has killed aroud 10,340 civilians this year.

Source: Al Jazeera, News Agencies