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30 Killed in Northeast Nigeria Bomb Blast on Crowded Bridge


FILE - People cross a bridge linking Cameroon and Nigeria at Gamboru in Borno, Nigeria, April 27, 2017. An improvised explosive device that detonated on the bridge Jan. 6, 2020, killed at least 30 people.
FILE - People cross a bridge linking Cameroon and Nigeria at Gamboru in Borno, Nigeria, April 27, 2017. An improvised explosive device that detonated on the bridge Jan. 6, 2020, killed at least 30 people.

At least 30 people were killed in the northeastern Nigerian state of Borno after an improvised explosive device detonated on a bridge, sources told Reuters on Monday.

The bomb detonated at roughly 5 p.m. local time (1600 GMT) on a crowded bridge in the market town of Gamboru that leads into neighboring Cameroon.

Witnesses in the market town said more than 35 injured people were taken to the local hospital following the attack.

"It is an unfortunate day for us to witness this frustrating and devastating incident in our community," eyewitness Modu Ali Said told Reuters.

"I just heard a loud sound of explosions, before I realized I saw many of our friends and colleagues were killed," Said added.

Two sources with the Civilian Joint Task Force, a group of citizens formed to fight Boko Haram, confirmed the attack and the early death toll estimates.

No group immediately took responsibility. Both Boko Haram and the regional offshoot of Islamic State, known as ISWAP, are active in the area.

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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