At least eight people were killed after a suicide bomber detonated explosives in a mosque in north-east Nigeria, police told CNN.
The incident happened 4.30am local time on Monday in the remote village of Konduga, Borno State, while worshippers were preparing for early morning prayers, police said.
“A male suicide bomber went into a mosque and denoted explosives, killing himself and seven others. Seven others are injured, and they have been taken to the hospital,” Borno State Commissioner of Police Damian Chukwu told CNN.
Nigeria’s North East National Emergency Management Agency Coordinator, Bashir Garga, said those wounded in the blast are receiving treatment at a local hospital.
So far, no one has claimed responsibility for Monday’s attack, but the police in Borno said they suspect terror group Boko Haram, whose militants have waged a decade-long war bombing mosques, markets and other public places in northern Nigeria.
The latest bombing is one of a series of attacks on mosques in recent months.
Last month, at least 20 worshippers were killed and scores wounded in a double bomb blast targeted at a mosque in Damboa town in Borno State. Around 24 people were also killed after two bombs exploded in a mosque in Mubi, Adamawa State in May.
Boko Haram continues deadly attacks in villages in Nigeria’s northeast despite claims by the military that its troops have reclaimed territories previous inhabited by the militant group.
Nigeria’s army on Sunday said some of its soldiers were killed in an ambush by Boko Haram militants in Yobe, one of the states that has borne the brunt of attacks.