Sunday, January 22, 2012

Kano Death Toll at 250


Nigeria’s second-largest city, Kano, is under a 24-hour curfew Saturday following a string of bombings and gunfights that claimed the lives of around 150 people late Friday night. The death toll varies according to the source: AP says at least 143, CNN hears 156 and AFP, 162. Exact number aside, it was undoubtedly the deadliest coordinated strike claimed by Islamist sect Boko Haram, notes Reuters, and hospitals are struggling to deal with the dead and injured.

The death toll in Nigeria’s northern city of Kano is bound to continue rising. Reuters hears word that at least 178 people were killed while one doctor tells the AFP that the final toll is likely to be around 250. On Sunday, aid workers continued the grim process of collecting bodies from the streets, reports the BBC. Meanwhile, there is increased speculation that the attack was launched as a way for Boko Haram to free some of its members from jail. Nigeria's President Goodluck Jonathan arrived in Kano Sunday to pay his condolences, reports the Associated Press.
Nigerian police said the attackers targeted eight government sites: five police buildings, two immigration offices and a local headquarters of the country’s secret police. The BBC hears word that the bombings may have been suicide attacks, but nothing seems certain yet as residents have been hiding in their homes, afraid of what could happen next. Nigeria also closed its borders with Cameroon and Niger Saturday, reports CNN.

Source: The Slatest

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