Kano, Nigeria, May 2: Gravediggers Wednesday said they buried 86 people from a double suicide bombing in northeast Nigeria, nearly three times more than the official toll.
Two blasts ripped through a mosque and market Tuesday in the town of Mubi, Adamawa state, in an attack that bore all the hallmarks of Boko Haram jihadists. One worker at Mubi’s only cemetery said they were “shocked” to hear about the lower toll. “We worked up to 9:00 pm burying bodies. By the time we closed, we had 76 graves. We buried 76 people yesterday,” he said, asking to remain anonymous. “Today, as at 3:00 pm (local time), 10 more bodies were brought in and buried. These people died overnight from injuries, obviously.” Another gravedigger, who also asked for his name not to be used, supported the account. “We hope we are done with the burials,” he added.
The attack came a day after US President Donald Trump promised his visiting Nigerian counterpart, Muhammadu Buhari, greater support in fighting the Islamist extremists. Buhari and the military have long maintained the Islamic State group affiliate is a spent force and on the verge of defeat but repeated attacks and raid in the northeast suggest otherwise.
AFP
