Bomb Blasts rock army, airforce barracks in Kaduna

Heavy bomb blasts have been recorded in the One Mechanised Division in Kawo, Kaduna and the Nigerian Air Force barracks in the city.

Reports indicate that suicide bomber successfully infiltrated the division and exploded a bomb while a second suicide bomber detonated a bomb at the gate of the airforce base on Airport Road and a third bomb exploded under a busy flyover close to Kawo Motor Park.

Soldiers prevented Emergency workers from the National Emergency Management Authority (NEMA) and men of the Road Safety Corps were prevented from going near the scene of the bomb explosions as soldiers cordoned off the scene chasing away journalists and civilians.

The military said the attack on the barracks was carried out by a suicide bomber wearing an army uniform. Troops opened fire on him before he was able to reach the compound’s buildings.

According to the military, the blast went off after soldiers opened fire on the car as the bomber sought to force his way onto the grounds at the barracks in Kaduna, a major city in Nigeria’s mainly Muslim north.

“There was a suicide bombing attempt by someone dressed in military uniform, driving in a private car,” army spokesman Raphael Isa told journalists.

“The soldiers … repelled the attack and were able to stop what would have been a suicide bombing at the frontage of the headquarters” of the 1st Mechanised Division, the spokesman said.

“However after firing on the suicide bomber who tried to force his way, the bomb exploded and shattered the glass that adorns the frontage of the headquarters. The suicide bomber was the only casualty…”

A military source said the bomber was killed.

A rescue official and residents said a second explosion occurred near a bridge in Kaduna, while residents reported a third at an air force base near the army barracks.

According to residents, the blast near the bridge damaged four commuter buses and wounded passengers, but details of the explosion at the air force base were unclear. One resident said it appeared a bomb had been planted there.

Musa Ilallah, an official with the National Emergency Management Agency in Kaduna who confirmed the explosion near the bridge, said rescue workers had been deployed to affected areas but were being refused access by soldiers.

“From all indications, they gate-crashed into the military barracks,” said Ilallah.

One resident said he saw soldiers being taken out of the barracks with cuts thought to be from the shattered glass.

“Virtually all the glass has been shattered,” the resident said. “I saw soldiers with glass cuts on their bodies being taken out, but it’s difficult to say if there were any (more serious) casualties.”