Yesterday, January 17th 2018, a suicide bomb attack at a market in Muna Garage, a camp for displaced people in Maiduguri, in Nigeria’s northeastern Borno state, left at least 12 killed and 65 injured.
The attacks are thought to have been carried out by four female suicide bombers. Though no group has yet claimed responsibility for the attacks, Boko Haram frequently carries out attacks in the area and often uses women and girls to carry out such bombings.
The attack was the first suicide bombing in Maiduguri of the year.
AOAV records casualties (i.e. people killed and injured) from explosive violence around the world as reported in English-language news sources.
Our latest data shows that in the first 11 months of 2017 there was a 42% increase in civilian deaths from explosive violence globally, compared to the same period in 2016. However, Nigeria saw a 108% increase in civilian deaths from explosive violence in this period, or a 136% rise in civilian casualties (deaths and injuries).
Whilst in the same period the previous year 100% of civilian casualties were caused by IEDs in Nigeria, IEDs in this 11-month period of 2017 accounted for 63% of all civilian casualties, due to a large-scale air strike in January where the Nigerian army bombed a refugee camp in Rann, Borno, believing it to be a Boko Haram base. At least 285 civilians were killed or injured in the attack.
Despite this, civilian casualties from IEDs in Nigeria rose by 57% between January and November 2017 compared to the same period in 2016 – civilian casualties from suicide bombings increased by 74%.
In the same period, at least 40% of all IED attacks in the country took place in Maiduguri.
Though the levels of civilian harm from IEDs is still significantly less than previous years, due to national efforts to destroy Boko Haram, the group still maintains a presence and the ability to carry out such attacks. And, these attacks have been on the increase.
AOAV calls on all states to urgently address the threat of IED attacks. There is an urgent need for preventative measures to be implemented by States and the international community.
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