Three vigilantes killed in Nigeria’s suicide bombing

By Rafiu Ajakaye

LAGOS, Nigeria (AA) - At least three members of a government-backed vigilante group were killed late Monday when a suicide bomber detonated himself at a suburb of Nigeria’s Maiduguri town in the insurgency-wracked northeast, police said Tuesday.

"A male suicide bomber riding on a bicycle detonated the improvised explosive device strapped to his body at Muna Datti area, killing himself and three Civilian Joint Task Force members,” Borno police spokesman Joseph Kwaji said in a statement.

Kwaji said 17 others were injured in the blast and rushed to hospital in Maiduguri.

He said the slain vigilante members were on duty when the incident occurred, adding that police have sent bomb disposal units to the area for further investigation.

Boko Haram militants, after seeing a reduction in their operational capabilities, have resorted more often to suicide bombings and ambushes on soft and military targets in Nigeria’s northeast.

Despite government's claims to have suppressed the insurgency, Boko Haram fighters have managed to keep the security forces on their toes.

In mid-February, the militants abducted some 110 schoolgirls in northeast Yobe in an attack on a girls-only government college.

Last week, four aid workers and eight security personnel were killed in a surprise attack on a displaced persons camp in Rann town of Borno state.