The Nigerian army said its forces have contained the attempted invasion of Maiduguri by Boko Haram militants.
Multiple explosions were heard Sunday morning at Kayamla Dalori neighborhoods and along the road from Bama, in the southeast of the city where on Thursday where four Boko Haram suicide bombers killed at least 14 people.
An officer of the Nigerian military confirmed the explosions on condition of anonymity and assured that the military controlled the situation.
“Yes, we have had problems in the outskirts of Maiduguri, but the terrorists will not have the upper hand,” he told AFP.
“The explosions occurred around 7:00 (0600 GMT), I do not know if the terrorists are preparing to invade the city, but the sound of explosions was really huge,” said Yusuf Kursi, an employee of the University of Maiduguri near the site of the explosions.
Khadija Mustapha, a resident of Dalori, about ten km southeast of Maiduguri, said she had left her house for fear of being caught in the explosion: “I went to another neighborhood with my three girls, because I do not know what’s coming, “she said by ensuring that several neighbors had done the same.
According Amodu Bashir, a resident of Gomari, on the way to Damaturu, west of Maiduguri, Boko Haram insurgents might want to invade Maiduguri, the birthplace of the movement born in 2009.
“They have already destroyed several small villages in the area and may wish to continue their offensive,” he has said.
After several military setbacks, the group Boko Haram in recent months has increased its operations against defenseless villages and suicide bombings in urban centres in north-eastern Nigeria.
Boko Haram, whose insurgency has killed at least 17,000 people dead and over 2.5 million displaced since 2009, is held responsible for the deaths of more than 1,260 people since the inauguration of the new President Muhammadu Buhari May 29 according to a tally drawn up by AFP.