Suicide bomber kills five in Maiduguri

• Troops gun down two Boko Haram terrorists
• UNICEF to immunise 41m children on polio in North East

A suicide bomber, yesterday, detonated an Improvised Explosive Device (IED), killing a driver and four passengers.

The incident occurred 9 a.m., at Muna garage, along Gambouru road, Maiduguri.

Spokesman for the Borno State Police Command, Isuku Victor, confirmed the incident in a statement.

Victor said: “At about 0830 hours, there was an IED explosion on board a Golf car, carrying five passengers (four females and a male driver). The suicide bomber, who is believed to be one of the female casualties, was picked up along Gambouru road, before the car blew up this morning.”

An eyewitness said: “Dozens of passers-by were wounded. The death toll could rise. The injured were rushed to a hospital, having suffered burns and multiple fractures.”

In a related development, Nigerian troops killed two suspected Boko Haram terrorists, while clearing remnants of insurgents in Ladin Buta and Juwano villages in Jere Council of the state, 11 a.m., Tuesday.

The soldiers recovered two rifles, ammunition and two mobile phones.

Acting Director, Army Public Relations, Col. Sani Usman, disclosed this yesterday in a statement.

He said: “The Boko Haram fighters were believed to be terrorising the residents through wanton killings, kidnappings and armed robberies. During the exchange of fire, two terrorists were gunned down, while others escaped with gunshot wounds.”

Meanwhile, the United Nations Children Education Fund (UNICEF) on Tuesday said a massive health campaign was being conducted in the Lake Chad Basin area to immunise 41 million children against polio and contain recent outbreak.

The U.N. agency, in a statement, revealed that about 39,000 health workers were deployed across Nigeria, Chad, Niger, Cameroon and the Central African Republic, to deliver vaccines in high-risk areas during five rounds of coordinated campaigns.

“UNICEF is procuring the vaccines and engaging the public through mass media and grassroots mobilisation. The re-emergence of polio after two years with no recorded cases is a huge concern in an area that’s already in crisis,” said Manuel Fontaine, UNICEF Regional Director for West and Central Africa.