MAIDUGURI, Nigeria—A series of suspected bomb explosions has rocked the city of Maiduguri in north-eastern Nigeria, with an unspecified number of people feared dead and many others injured.
The blasts occurred simultaneously at approximately 19:00 local time on Monday. One explosion hit the busy Monday Market area near El-Kanemi, while a second blast was reported close to a security post at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.
Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, has been the epicentre of a long-running insurgency by Islamist militant groups, though the city had seen a relative period of calm in recent months.
Emergency Response
The Federal Fire Service in Borno State confirmed that teams have been deployed to the affected sites to assess the damage and assist with rescue operations.
“We have deployed our team to the Monday Market area to assess the situation,” said Mohammed Kafaran, Head of Operations for the service. “We will provide further updates as the situation clarifies.”
Eyewitnesses described scenes of chaos as the explosions ripped through the commercial heart of the city. “There were bodies on the ground, and many people with visible wounds were being rushed to the State Specialist Hospital,” one resident told local media.
Spontaneous Blasts
Another witness, who was near the central post office at the time of the blast, described hearing a “deafening” sound that sent people running for safety.
Images and videos shared on social media—yet to be independently verified—show emergency vehicles navigating crowded streets and smoke rising from the vicinity of the market.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks. Security forces have cordoned off the affected areas, and residents have been advised to stay away from the blast sites as investigators check for any secondary devices.
The incident underscores the ongoing security challenges in the region, despite government claims that the insurgency has been significantly weakened.
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