MAIDUGURI, Nigeria: Armed extremists in northeastern Nigeria killed dozens of people earlier this week in separate attacks targeting a construction site and a military installation, security officials said on Saturday.
Gunmen killed at least 25 construction workers during an ambush on Thursday in the town of Sabon Gari in Borno State, said a senior officer of the Borno State Police Command. Authorities in Nigeria often decline to publicly confirm death tolls in attacks, citing security concerns.
“It is a devastating loss, and the hallmarks point directly to Boko Haram insurgents who have long resisted developmental projects in these areas,” the police official said.
Boko Haram, Nigeria’s homegrown terrorists, took up arms in 2009 to fight Western education and impose radical laws.
The insurgency now includes an offshoot of the Daesh group, known as ISWAP. It has spilled into Nigeria’s northern neighbors, including Niger, killing about 35,000 civilians and displacing more than 2 million people, according to the UN.
