AIG Zone 10 office in Sokoto after an attack by a suspected suicide bomber. Right: Wreckage of the Honda car used by the bomber... |
GUNMEN early Monday attacked the
family residence of the Vice-President Namadi Sambo in Tundun-Wada,
Zaria, Kaduna State, injuring the two mobile policemen guarding the
house.
A cobbler attending to one of the mobile
policemen as of the time of the attack was reportedly hit and died on
the spot. The attack on the VP house occurred at 11 o’clock in the
morning.
Also, suspected suicide bombers launched
attacks on the office of the Assistant Inspector-General of Police in
charge of Zone 10 in Sokoto, Muhtari Ibrahim, and a shop owned by the
Police Officer Wives’ Association, adjacent to the Unguwar Rogo police
station, Marina, Sokoto.
Dead victims of the Sokoto attacks included a hairdresser, a policeman, and the two suspected bombers.
The attacks in Sokoto and Kaduna came on
a day the police announced the casualty figure of Sunday night’s
bombing in Kano. The police said four persons were killed in the blast
that rocked the Kano-Gwarzo Road but residents insisted on Monday that
the casualty figure was higher.
In Tundun-Wada, Zaria, unknown gunmen on
a motorbike fired at Sambo’s residence under rehabilitation and injured
the policemen on guard.
The house had remained uninhabited by
the VP family since it was attacked during the 2011 post-election
violence in Kaduna State.
Ibrahim confirmed the attack on his
office and the death of a policeman, a Corporal; and the suicide bomber.
He said eight policemen and a civilian were injured as a result of the
attack.
The AIG said that five offices and other
parts of the one-storey building, the gate, and some neighbouring
houses were shattered. The official car of the police chief was also
reportedly damaged.
He was quoted by the News Agency of Nigeria
as saying that the suicide bomber who attacked his office drove a Honda
Accord car and forced his way into the premises after he was denied
entry.
Ibrahim said that only the dead suicide
bomber was in the vehicle, adding that investigations would continue on
the development.
He asked members of the public to provide security agencies with useful information to curb the trend.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Kudu Nma,
who confirmed the attack on the Unguwar Rogo police station, said the
attacker could not gain access into the police station .
According to Nma, only the attacker died at the Unguwar Rogo police station after he struck a nearby POWA shop.
Spokesman for the Sokoto State Police
Command, Sani Salisu, a Deputy Superintendent of Police, confirmed the
death of the hairdresser at the POWA shop near Unguwar rogo police
station.
The Deputy Force Public Relations
Officer, Frank Mba, who also confirmed the attacks, said security had
been beefed in the areas.
“Security has been beefed up in Sokoto and Zaria and men of the Anti-Terrorist Squad have taken over the areas,” Mba told The PUNCH.
The violent attacks in Sokoto and
Kaduna, analysts said on Monday must have taken security agents by
surprise given the expectation that the attackers, believed to be
members of the violent Islamic sect, Boko Haram, would cease fire during
the Ramadan season.
The attacks also came barely 24 hours
after two ex-heads of state, Olusegun Obasanjo and Ibrahim Babangida, in
a joint statement lamented the worsening state of security in the
country. Obasanjo and Babangida said Nigerians were living in fear and
uncertainty.
The Kano State Police Commissioner, Mr Ibrahim Idris had also confirmed the attack on the city on Sunday night.
He said that some gunmen attempted to attack a mosque in Jan Bulo quarters around 10:30 p.m. on Sunday.
An official statement by the command on
Monday said, “The Kano State Police Command wish to inform the general
public that on 29th Day of July 2012 at 2030hrs, unknown gunmen on three
motorcycles attacked a patrol team attached to Rijar Zaki positioned at
2nd Gate JamblockEstate.
“The police patrol team responded and in
the ensuing gun duel, two of the attackers were gunned down by the
police, while two died from explosives they were carrying.
“One of them was burnt beyond
recognition. There was no police or civilian casualty. Recovered at the
scene of the incident were three motorcycles, one AK 47 rifle, an
assault rifle and 50 rounds of ammunition.
“Officers of the Command Anti-Bomb Squad
combed the entire area and further recovered 10 undetonated explosives.
The area is now calm.”
However, residents of the area insisted on Monday that the casualty figure was higher because it was a densely populated area.
“Whoever claimed that only four people
(attackers) died is telling a huge lie. Some civilians were victims too.
The area was busy with people; some were still breaking their Ramadan
fast. Some were already at the mosque for prayers,” a resident who did
not want his name mentioned told our correspondent in Kano on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Senate President, David
Mark, has condemned the Sokoto attacks and asked security agencies to
come with new strategy to deal with the worsening insecurity in the
country.
Mark said the attacks were an assault on
the peaceful co-existenc among the people of Sokoto and begged
religious leaders to continue to appeal to members of Boko Haram to
accept the dialogue offer from government.
He said, “The Federal Government will
not dialogue with itself. It has to dialogue with those who are
disenchanted with the system, particularly, leadership and members of
the Boko Haram sect.
“We also urged our political and religious leaders to continue to appeal to the sect to listen to the voice of reason.”
Source: PUNCH
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