By Tom Garba, Yola – The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has confirmed 27 death in the bomb blast that rocked a Mosque during the Juma’at service in Yola, Maiduguri capital Friday.
NEMA’s National Coordinator in Adamawa, Saad Bello, put the dead at 27 while 96 were reportedly injured.
But Eyewitness account however said over 50 persons died and hundreds of many others injured.
The bomb explosion occurred at a newly constructed Mosque with many Muslim Worshipers feared dead during the launch of a Friday mosque near old hajj camp in Jambutu area of Yola.
The blast which occurred at about 2:00 pm Friday shortly after the commencement of Friday prayers shook the town as it was heard across Jimeta, the administrative capital of Yola.
Eyewitness account revealed that the bomb was detonated by a young suicide bomber in the vicinity of the mosque.
“A young man sneaked into the vicinity of the mosque immediately after the prayer commences and detonated it leading to massive casualty,” the eye witness said.
A member of the first aid group of Jama’atul Bid’a Wa Ikhamatus Sunnah (JIBWIS) Mallam Yusuf Osama said the suicide bomber detonated his explosives shortly after the Friday prayers commences.
“It is a gory scenario, many people were killed in the blast and we are busy evacuating dead bodies and injured victims to hospital.
“The suicide bomber wanted to get access to the main bowl of the mosque so that he will cause massive havoc but before he reaches the building, the bomb detonated.
“The decapitated head of the suicide bomber was lying among the mangled bodies of the victims,” Osama noted.
Another eyewitness on condition of anonymity said a batch of soldiers drafted to the scene have opened fire on the crowd instantly killing about three people.
“When the first batch of soldiers came, they started beating people with horse whips which caused uproar as the Worshipers retaliated by felting the soldiers with stones and the soldiers fired shots leading to the instant death of many people,” the source said.
Confirming the incident, Police Public Relations Officer Adamawa State Police Command, DSP Othman Abubakar said so far the casualty figure has not been confirmed.
