At least 26 people lost their lives on Monday after two vehicles ran over an improvised explosive device (IED) along the Kala-Balge to Gamboru-Ngala road in Borno State, northeast Nigeria.
The explosion occurred around midday near Furunduma village when a pickup van traveling from Rann, the headquarters of Kala-Balge Local Government Area, to Gamboru-Ngala, struck the device, triggering a deadly blast.
The Borno State Police Command confirmed the incident, with spokesperson ASP Nahum Daso identifying the affected vehicle as an Izuzu pickup van, bearing registration number XA265KKU.
Among the deceased were 16 men, four women, and six children. Three individuals, including the driver, sustained injuries and are receiving treatment at a nearby medical facility.
An internal memo from the International NGO Safety Organisation, a group supporting foreign humanitarian agencies in the region, also verified the explosion. The memo agreed that the victims were civilians commuting between the two communities, both of which are deeply impacted by insurgency-related violence.
Local sources presented conflicting casualty figures, with some residents reporting a lower death toll of eight while acknowledging that several others had major injuries.
Series of Deadly Attacks
This incident is the second fatal IED explosion in Borno in just over two weeks. On April 13, a Hummer bus traveling from Damboa to Maiduguri hit an explosive device planted along the road at Komala village in Konduga Local Government Area.
The blast claimed eight lives and left 11 others severely wounded. Authorities suspect Boko Haram fighters were behind the attack.
Meanwhile, on April 26, suspected Boko Haram insurgents killed 14 farmers and two members of the Civilian Joint Task Force (CJTF) in Gwoza Local Government Area.
The CJTF members, returning from patrol near Sabon-Gari, close to Kirawa, were ambushed and shot at by militants, leaving two members dead while the driver managed to escape with injuries.
The following day, 14 farmers heading towards their fields near the Mandara Mountains, between Pulka and Ngoshe, were attacked, resulting in multiple deaths.
Emir of Gwoza, Mohammed Idris Timta, confirmed that the farmers had ventured beyond the government-designated safe farming zones without security escorts.
These recent attacks contribute to the ongoing wave of violence in Borno, the epicenter of a 15-year insurgency led by Boko Haram and its faction, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
Both groups continue to use IEDs and ambush tactics to target civilians, aid workers and even soldiers.
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