Nigeria: Boko Haram suicide blasts kill 27 people near Maiduguri August 15

Event

Three suspected Boko Haram suicide bombings killed at least 27 people and wounded 83 others in the village of Konduga near Maiduguri on Tuesday, August 15. According to local officials, a suicide bomber killed herself and 27 others in a market in Konduga, while two other suicide bombers wounded many others at the gates to a nearby refugee camp.

While Boko Haram has not yet claimed responsibility for Tuesday's attack, the method and location indicate they are most likely behind the bombing. Boko Haram is notorious for using women in bombings and Maiduguri, located in the country's persistently insecure northeast, has been the focal point of recent conflict between Nigerian government forces and Boko Haram insurgents. Expect an increased security presence and reinforced security measures in the area in the wake of Tuesday's bombings.

Context

The northeastern region of Nigeria is highly susceptible to attacks by Boko Haram, which pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (IS) in March 2015 and formally adopted the name of Islamic State in West Africa. While Nigerian military forces advanced against Boko Haram insurgents last year and pushed them out of much of their previously claimed territory, attacks by the insurgent group have been again on the rise since June, with at least 170 people killed since then (taking the numbers from Tuesday's attack into account).

Public venues (markets, places of worship, schools, bars, areas where broadcasts of sports competitions are displayed, etc.) as well as security forces and governmental buildings are frequently struck by attacks, suicide bombings (targeted or untargeted), and kidnappings (regularly followed by assassination and targeting primarily foreign nationals).

Advice

The security environment in Nigeria is complex and particularly poor in the northeast and extreme south of the country due to the presence of armed groups, high crime rates, and the risk of kidnapping. Some Western governments consequently advise against travel to certain areas of the northeast (e.g. states of Borno, Yobe, Gombe, Bauchi, and Jigawa as well as parts of Kano and Adamawa states) and the southern Niger Delta region (e.g. states of Delta, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom, and Rivers). Professional security advice and support should be sought prior to travel to these areas.