Abuja [Nigeria]: At least 65 people lost their lives after local terror group Boko Haram opened fire on a funeral in Nigeria’s northeastern state of Borno in the weekend.
“It is 65 people dead and 10 injured,” Muhammed Bulama, the local government chairman, was quoted as saying by Al Jazeera.
Bulama reportedly said that he thought Saturday’s attack was in retaliation for the killing two weeks ago of 11 Boko Haram fighters by local residents when the fighters approached their village.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday condemned the attack and directed the country’s air force and army to begin air patrols and ground operations to hunt down the attackers, a statement released by the president’s office said.
The faction typically carries out suicide attacks against soft civilian targets such as mosques, markets and bus stations, often using young women and girls as bombers.
The last attack was in June when as many as 30 people were killed and 40 others injured after three suicide bombers, including two girls and a boy, detonated explosives at Konduga village in Borno.