Car Bomb Blast Claims Victims In Nigeria’s United Nations Offices

A car bomb explosion at the United Nation’s offices in the capital city of Abuja, Nigeria has killed several people (early reports say between 7 and 10) and demolished an entire wing of the edifice. According to witnesses, a sedan barreled through the building’s surrounding gates before the blast occurred sometime before 11 a.m. local time. Various people at the scene reported that it “felt like” the blast came from the basement.

Britain’s Sky News reports that, while the motivation behind the bombing is still unknown, Nigeria had previously experienced another bombing earlier this summer:

In June, the radical Muslim sect of Boko Haram carried out a bombing at Nigeria’s federal police headquarters, killing two people.

Nigeria’s President Goodluck Jonathan has recently pledged to work with neighboring Niger to fight Islamic extremism in the region.

The AP adds that, earlier this month, the commander for U.S. military operations in Africa said the group “may be trying to link with two al-Qaida-linked groups in other African countries to mount joint attacks in Nigeria.”

h/t Sky News and the AP via NPR

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