KONDUGA: A suicide attack in Nigeria’s Borno state by a woman allegedly acting for Boko Haram killed 20 pro-government fighters on Friday.

Boko Haram and its rival, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), have in recent months intensified attacks on villages in Borno and neighbouring states.

They have also overrun military bases, killing soldiers and carting away weapons.

Late on Friday, a woman allegedly detonated explosives strapped to her body at a haunt for vigilantes and local hunters assisting the Nigerian military in fighting Boko Haram in the town of Konduga.

“We lost 20 people in the suicide attack which happened yesterday around 9.15pm (2015 GMT) while our members were hanging out near the fish market,” said Tijjani Ahmed, the head of a militia in Konduga district.

Konduga is about 40 kilometres from Maiduguri, the capital of the northeastern state of Borno.

Surrounding villages have been repeatedly targeted by suicide bombers said to be acting for Boko Haram, a group that has been active in the area for 16 years.

Konduga town itself had seen a lull in such attacks in the past year.

“Eighteen people died on the spot, while 18 others were injured. Two more died in hospital, raising the death toll to 20,” Ahmed said.

Sixteen were wounded, with 10 of them nursing severe injuries in two hospitals in Maiduguri, he said.

Crowded fish market

The dead were buried in a mass funeral on Saturday. Corpses wrapped in white cloths, some covered in bamboo mats, were laid out in rows on the ground on wooden biers ahead of the burial.

Published in Dawn, June 22nd, 2025