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Bomb attacks in Nigerian capital of Abuja kill at least 18 people

The blasts, which injured 40 others, occurred on the outskirts of the Nigerian capital, in the townships of Nyanya and Kuje.

By Fred Lambert
Multiple bomb blasts in the Nigerian capital of Abuja killed at least 18 people and injured another 40 on Oct. 2, 2015. No groups have claimed responsibility for the blasts, but terrorist group Boko Haram, which has conducted similar attacks across Nigeria and neighboring countries since 2009, is suspected. Photo by Chippla/ Wikimedia Commons.
Multiple bomb blasts in the Nigerian capital of Abuja killed at least 18 people and injured another 40 on Oct. 2, 2015. No groups have claimed responsibility for the blasts, but terrorist group Boko Haram, which has conducted similar attacks across Nigeria and neighboring countries since 2009, is suspected. Photo by Chippla/ Wikimedia Commons.

ABUJA, Nigeria, Oct. 4 (UPI) -- A series of blasts that killed at least 18 people on the outskirts of the Nigerian capital of Abuja on Friday are being blamed on terrorist group Boko Haram.

The BBC reports the first two attacks occurred in Kuje township, where a suicide bomber detonated near a police station and another bomb exploded in a market, and a third was reported at a bus stop in Nyanya, which was targeted by Boko Haram last year.

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Another 40 people were injured in the attacks, which have not been claimed by any groups.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who was elected earlier this year on a pledge to destroy Boko Haram, tweeted his condolences, saying his "heart goes out to the families of the dead and injured in Abuja and other parts of the country."

"Our will cannot be broken; evil will never triumph over good," he wrote. "We will be rid of this evil stalking our land."

Since 2009, Islamic terrorist group Boko Haram has conducted a series of suicide attacks, mass kidnappings, executions and assaults on remote military bases and villages, usually in northeastern Nigerian states, such as Borno and Yobe. The group seeks the establishment of an Islamic state and has extended its attacks into neighboring countries, such as Cameroon, Chad and Niger.

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On Sunday, multiple suicide bombings in Diffa, Niger, are reported to have killed at least 10 people, including five civilians, a policeman and the four bombers.

The same day, the Nigerian Labour Congress, a group of trade unions in the country, said the Friday attacks in Abuja were an attempt by Boko Haram to embarrass the Nigerian government after it made claims of recent victories over the militants.

Also on Sunday, Nigeria's main opposition party, the People's Democratic Party, is reported to have condemned Friday's bombings, which came one day after similar attacks in Maiduguri, in Borno state, killed 14 people and injured 39 others -- and less than 24 hours after Nigeria celebrated its 55th independence anniversary.

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