A suspected suicide bombing in a northeastern Nigeria state capital has killed more than 30 people and injured at least 80, according to the Nigerian Emergency Management Agency.
"So far we have recorded 32 dead bodies and 80 others sustained injuries," Saad Bello, the coordinator of the relief organization in Adamawa state, said on Wednesday.
The explosion occurred at a market and truck stop in Yola, the state capital, at around 8pm on Tuesday. The blast is thought to be the work of Boko Haram Islamist militants, who have killed tens of thousands of people since the group started a violent campaign in 2009 to impose its version of Shariah law in the country.
Meanwhile, Facebook Inc activated its “Safety Check” feature after the deadly blasts in Nigeria, following criticism from users that the social media network was being selective about deploying it.
Facebook usually activates the feature, which allows users to mark themselves as safe, after natural disasters, but not bombings or attacks. The social network, however, activated it after Friday’s gun and bomb attacks in Paris, drawing criticism from some users because the feature was not activated for suicide bombings in Beirut a day earlier.
In a post on his Facebook page, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said the feature would now we be used more frequently. “After the Paris attacks last week, we made the decision to use Safety Check for more tragic events like this going forward,” he said.