Suspected suicide attacks kill at least 23 in north-east Nigeria

51 minutes agoChris EwokorBBC Africa, AbujaReutersThe attacks happened at some of Maiduguri's busiest placesAt least 23 people have been killed and 108 injured in a series of suspected suicide bombings in Maiduguri, the capital of Nigeria's north-eastern Borno state, police say.A post office, a popular weekly market and the Maiduguri-teaching-hospital" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="45221" data-entity-type="location">University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital were hit within minutes of each other at around 19:30 local time (18:30 GMT) on Monday.The sites, which are among the city's busiest locations, had drawn large crowds after the day's Ramadan fast was broken.Monday's explosions represent one of the deadliest attacks Maiduguri had witnessed in years.The city was once the epicentre of an insurgency by militant Islamist group Boko Haram. However, it had been enjoying a relatively stable period after intensified military operations had pushed armed groups into remote border areas."Preliminary investigation reveals that the incidents were ​carried out by suspected suicide bombers," Borno police said in a statement, adding that an investigation was under way to establish the identity of the attackers.Modu Bukar, a resident who witnessed the market blast and helped take victims to hospital, told the AFP news agency: "We were sitting when we suddenly heard a loud explosion. Everyone immediately started running in fear. "As we ran, people kept shouting that we should keep going."Nigerian President Bola Tinubu condemned the attack on Tuesday, saying that "Nigeria will not succumb to fear".The culprits will be "located, confronted, and completely defeated", he added in a statement.Just hours before the bombings, security forces repelled an overnight attack by suspected Islamist fighters on a military post in the Ajilari Cross area, on the outskirts of Maiduguri.The scale and location of Monday's attacks - deep within the city - have shaken residents who had cautiously begun to believe that the worst years of Boko Haram's insurgency were over.Officials have warned that the threat of further violence remains, even as emergency and security agencies work to reinforce safety across the city.You may also be interested in:Getty Images/BBCBBC Africa podcasts