Scores of people were believed to have lost their lives as two suicide bombers detonated their bombs in Jos, the Plateau State capital this(Sunday) night. Details of the blasts are sketchy as of the time of writing.
It is gathered that the first bomb went off at a restaurant opposite the Bauchi road campus of the University of Jos at about 9.15pm, while the second one exploded at a mosque near Yan Tyre (tyre market) area of Dilimi Junction, along the same Bauchi road about 15 minutes later.
While the casualty figure from the first blast was given by an eyewitness as 15, the figure from the second blast at the mosque could not be ascertained. The latest incident occurred less than five months after a similar bomb was detonated where the first bomb went off.
It was learnt that while the first bomb might have been detonated by a suicide bomber as it happened inside a restaurant, the insurgent might have used a rocket launcher to attack the mosque.
According to an eyewitness, the front of the mosque is usually crowded as it serves as the location where the leader of the Izalla sect, Sheikh Yahaya Jingir, normally performs the tafsir (breaking of fast). The insurgents were said to have targeted worshippers who usually stay around after the breaking of fast.
The insurgents were said to have started shooting sporadically to beat a barricade mounted by security men in front of the mosque before launching the attack.
Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Emmanuel Abuh, who confirmed the twin blast, said men of the anti-bomb squad had been dispatched to the area. He explained that the exact casualty figure and the extent of damage could not be ascertained until the men cleared the area.
Abua added, “It is too early to give any figure. We have dispatched our men there and we are expecting feedback from them.”
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