Borno builds trenches as Boko Haram attacks Unimaid again 16 killed on Sallah day – Police Varsity needs N2bn for security
Eight family members were among 16 people killed in a multiple suicide bomb attacks in Maiduguri, police said yesterday.
Thirteen others were injured in the attacks, the State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Damian Chukwu, told newsmen in Maiduguri.
Among those the bombers targeted were people who were celebrating the Eid el-fitr festivities late Sunday evening.
Nine attackers sneaked into the city at night, broke into groups and went on to attack selected targets on the outskirts of the city, Daily Trust heard.
The eight family members were killed right inside their compound by a suicide bomber.
The Commissioner said the attacks started at about 10.21 pm on Sunday when a male suicide bomber, gained entry into the premises of University of Maiduguri, and set off a bomb strapped to his body near the Rapid Response Services Office building.
The suicide bomber died while three university security personnel on duty were injured.
“One of the injured security personnel, a female (whose identity was given as Becky Edubi), later died while being attended to, at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital.
He added that at about 10.30 pm, four female suicide bombers infiltrated Zannari community in London CikiGwange general area within the state capital.
Two of the suicide bombers detonated PBIEDs on their bodies in two residential buildings, he said.
“The suicide bombers died killing eight other persons or residents of the area while eleven others were injured. And the third bomber detonated PBIEDs killing himself alone,” Mr. Chukwu said,
“The fourth female suicide bomber, identity not known, who was arrested also died the same night as a result of injuries she sustained,” he said.
The Police boss said the attacks continued into the early hours of Monday when at about 4.08 am two other female suicide bombers returned and exploded their bombs within the premises of University of Maiduguri.
“One detonated close to the Entrepreneurship and Skill Acquisition Centre Complex killing herself with no other casualty. The other suicide bomber detonated behind Works Department complex also killing herself with no other casualty.”
Chukwu said the police anti explosion unit had been mobilised to the scenes, while the injured were evacuated to hospital for medical treatment.
Residents said there was serious pandemonium in Maiduguri throughout the night.
“We were terrified because apart from the explosions that vibrated from around the university, soldiers and policemen equally kept firing from the town, apparently to scare the invading terrorists,” Fanna Bukar, a civil servant living in Fouri neighborhood, said.
How terrorists are gaining access into the university
The University of Maiduguri was established in 1975. It has a student population of over 25,000 and is the largest in the North East in terms of landmass. It was never closed since the advent of the Boko Haram crisis in 2009 despite several attacks by Boko Haram at a time when all institutions of learning in the state were closed.
However, the Boko Haram terrorists moved their focus to the university early this year and since then, the Unimaid had come under constant attacks by the Boko Haram elements.
The University of Maiduguri has a circumference of over 40 kilometers making it easier for trespassers to penetrate.
Besides the fencing of some few kilometres of the frontage of the university with blocks (beginning from the Mairi neighbourhood while approaching the campus from Maiduguri), the remaining frontage only had metal fence while the back of the entire university was only covered with trenches that were dug at the height of the insurgency.
Though soldiers, some plain clothed policemen and DSS operatives had been deployed to the university to beef up the in-house security personnel employed by the university, their combine strength could not match the intimidating circumference of the entire university.
A source in the university said Boko Haram insurgents have in the last couple of months infiltrated communities close to the university, such as Zannari, Gwozari, London Ciki and Mairi, making the campus vulnerable to attacks.
“Many Boko Haram terrorists now live in these areas and that is where they plan and go out to execute their nefarious activities… They hardly come from outside Maiduguri,” Musa Yusuf, a resident of Gwange said.
“We are gradually drifting to the old days when Boko Haram terrorists were living among and threatening the civilian population,” he said.
Between 16th January and 25th June – a six-month period, the university community was hit with six suicide bomb blasts.
In an attack on January 16 by four suicide bombers, five people, including Professor Aliyu Mani were killed.
On Saturday, May 13, luck ran out of three suicide bombers who were killed when they attempted to get access into the university through the Department of Works premises.
The incident which occurred at about 1.10 am led to the death of a security guard at the University who reportedly confronted them.
Shettima approves N50m for trenches
Governor Kashim Shettima yesterday visited the university where he assessed different scenes of the multiple suicide attacks and thereafter approved the immediate release of N50m to dig trenches behind the university which covers 27.
A statement by his spokesman, Isa Umar Gusau said the governor had two weeks ago mobilized caterpillars to start the digging as a way of responding to previous attacks.
“The trenches are being designed to make it impossible for insurgents to drive into the university and also create difficulty for insurgents to cross on foot while the military will take advantage of being at the top to neutralize insurgents,” he said.
The statement said the Acting Vice Chancellor, Aliyu Shugaba, who conducted Shettima round the scenes, revealed that the university had requested for N2.8 billion naira from the Federal Government to enable fence the school.
“The Governor later went into the Vice Chancellor’s office and presided over a security meeting that was attended by the Garrison Commander of the 7th Division of the Nigerian Army, the Commissioner of Policy and those in charge of internal security at the university,” the statement said.
Shekau releases video on military/police convoy
Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau yesterday released a video in which he claimed responsibility of last Tuesday’s attack on a convoy of over 100 vehicles along Maiduguri- Damboa road.
“I want to tell you that we are the one that attacked the convoy…we are the ones that abducted the female police officers, in fact, they are senior female police officers,” Shekau said.
“We only abducted them to serve as slaves to us,” he said.
A source, Malam Bala Garba told our correspondents two police women and 15 others were ferried into nearby bushes by the abductors, who laid siege on the convoy that included nearly 80 policemen recently deployed to Borno State who were on their way to their place of primary assignment.
“The women were actually escorting the corpse of one Rahila, a police operative who died after sickness. Among the abducted were some relatives of the deceased and other sympathizers, they were on their way to Lassa,” he said.
A retired Army officer said the spate of attacks on Maiduguri of recent was because of “vested interests.”
“Remember that about two weeks ago, hundreds of Boko Haram terrorists buried the trenches dug along Jiddari Polo and rode their vehicles into Maiduguri and had a field day.
“The soldiers fled and as you are aware, civilian JTF are no longer interested in the fight because they are being frustrated by vested interests; nobody is taking the war to the Boko Haram in the bushes, they only wait to repel and you can’t succeed in war when you are fighting like this,” he added.
According to him, “Shekau and his fighters are closeby, they performed their Eid prayer on Sunday at Bladunu West adter Garin Bura River under a big tree; Malam Miyami (a senior Amir) performed his at Sambisa Gate I but nobody went their to confront them.
“The terrorists recently sent letters to communities near Maimalari Barracks asking the people to vacate their houses and they all left; the BH is planning to attacks,” he said.