Up to 143 die as radical Islamic sect attacks north Nigerian city
Source: Agencies |
January 22, 2012, Sunday
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Coordinated attacks claimed by a radical Islamist sect killed at least 143 people in north Nigeria's largest city, hospital records seen yesterday show, as gunfire still echoed around some areas of the sprawling city.
Soldiers and police officers swarmed over streets yesterday in Kano, a city of more than 9 million people that remains an important political and religious hub in Nigeria's Muslim north. But their effectiveness remains in question, as the uniformed bodies of many of their colleagues lay in the overflowing mortuary of Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital, Kano's largest hospital.
Hospital records showed at least 143 people died in the attacks, claimed by the Boko Haram group, that started on Friday afternoon after Muslim prayers and as shops closed for the weekend in the sprawling, dusty city. A mortuary attendant, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they had 126 bodies there. Other bodies likely lay at other clinics and hospitals in the city.
In a statement issued late on Friday, federal police spokesman Olusola Amore said attackers targeted five police buildings, two immigration offices and the local headquarters of the State Security Service, Nigeria's secret police.
Nwakpa O. Nwakpa, a spokesman for the Nigerian Red Cross, said volunteers offered first aid to the wounded, and evacuated those seriously injured to local hospitals. He said officials continued to collect corpses scattered around sites of the attacks.
Boko Haram , whose name means "Western education is sacrilege", has carried out bloody attacks in its campaign to implement strict Shariah law across Nigeria, a multi-ethnic nation of more than 160 million people.
Soldiers and police officers swarmed over streets yesterday in Kano, a city of more than 9 million people that remains an important political and religious hub in Nigeria's Muslim north. But their effectiveness remains in question, as the uniformed bodies of many of their colleagues lay in the overflowing mortuary of Murtala Muhammed Specialist Hospital, Kano's largest hospital.
Hospital records showed at least 143 people died in the attacks, claimed by the Boko Haram group, that started on Friday afternoon after Muslim prayers and as shops closed for the weekend in the sprawling, dusty city. A mortuary attendant, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said they had 126 bodies there. Other bodies likely lay at other clinics and hospitals in the city.
In a statement issued late on Friday, federal police spokesman Olusola Amore said attackers targeted five police buildings, two immigration offices and the local headquarters of the State Security Service, Nigeria's secret police.
Nwakpa O. Nwakpa, a spokesman for the Nigerian Red Cross, said volunteers offered first aid to the wounded, and evacuated those seriously injured to local hospitals. He said officials continued to collect corpses scattered around sites of the attacks.
Boko Haram , whose name means "Western education is sacrilege", has carried out bloody attacks in its campaign to implement strict Shariah law across Nigeria, a multi-ethnic nation of more than 160 million people.
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