The Islamic State West Africa Province has claimed responsibility for Monday’s devastating explosion in Borno State that killed 26 travellers when a pickup van hit an Improvised Explosive Device.
According to a report by Reuters, the terrorist group took credit for the attack in a statement posted on its Telegram channel on Tuesday.
Recall that the explosion occurred when a suspected Boko Haram-planted IED detonated under a moving vehicle travelling from Kala-Balge to Gamboru Ngala Local Government Area. The incident took place at about 12:00 p.m. near Furunduma village, resulting in significant casualties.
Confirming the development, the spokesperson for the Borno State Police Command, ASP Nahum Daso, disclosed to *The PUNCH* that the blast claimed the lives of 26 individuals, including men, women, and children.
“Earlier today at about 12:00 p.m., an Isuzu pickup van with registration number XA265KKU en route from Kala-Balge to Gamboru Ngala stepped on an IED around Furunduma village. The tragic incident led to the death of 26 persons—16 males, four females, and six children,” Daso said.
He added that the driver and two other victims sustained varying degrees of injuries and were immediately taken to a medical facility, where they are currently receiving treatment.
Monday’s bombing is the second of such attacks within the past three weeks in Borno State. Just 16 days earlier, a similar incident occurred along the Maiduguri–Damboa Road, claiming eight lives and leaving 11 others seriously injured after a passenger bus struck an IED.
Providing details on that earlier incident, ASP Daso had stated, “Today, around 11:45 a.m., we received a report of an incident where a Hummer bus with registration number Jigawa MMR144 from Damboa to Maiduguri stepped on an IED at Komala village in Konduga Local Government Area. The IED was suspected to have been planted by Boko Haram terrorists.”
In response to the spate of attacks, security agencies have intensified patrols and surveillance operations across the affected areas as investigations into the bombings continue.
