Death toll of Nigeria market blast rises to 31

Death toll of Tuesday's blast in a livestock market in Nigeria's northeastern city of Maiduguri, capital of the restive Borno State, has risen to 31, hospital sources said Wednesday.

Many local traders were affected in the bomb blast at Gamboru, a big market in the city, the hospital sources and rescue workers told Xinhua.

Eleven out of the 31 corpses evacuated at the scene of the blast were taken to Borno State Specialists Hospital, a state-run health facility, a medical staff said, adding at least 25 injured were rushed to the place for treatment.

Another source at the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, also run by the state, said some 20 dead bodies from the scene of the blast were received. Here, scores of injured people are being treated, added the source who preferred to be anonymous.

The state emergency management agency confirmed its rescuers evacuated 31 lifeless bodies at the market, after the incident.

While some witnesses said the bomb was buried under a large table used by one of the local traders at the livestock market, others said it was detonated by a suicide bomber who disguised as a customer.

The bomb exploded while business was thick and immediately killed at least 12 people, a witness named Abba Mohammed said Tuesday.

Mohammed described the incident as "devastating" and blamed it on Boko Haram, a terror group proving to be a hard nut to crack in the most populous African country.

Tuesday's attack came after two previous weekend attacks in Maiduguri, the known headquarters of Boko Haram, since new president Muhammadu Buhari was sworn in last Friday.

During his inaugural speech, Buhari had ordered the relocation of Nigeria's defense headquarters to Maiduguri until Boko Haram was subdued.

The Nigerian leader will on Wednesday embark on his first official trip to neighboring countries, Niger and Chad, to seek and renew their governments' cooperation in ending the insecurity caused by Boko Haram. Endi