Twin Boko Haram blasts rock central Nigeria

Two bombs attacks struck the central Nigerian city of Jos on Sunday evening in the latest wave of violence to hit the central Plateau State.

State police spokesman Abuh Emmanuel could not say how many casualties there had been, but locals reported "people running… crying, some with bloodstains," according to Reuters news agency, who also quoted one local as saying "I believe many lives were lost."

Early reports said that at least 44 people had died, and a further 67 were injured, according to The Associated Press.

Witnesses said the attack at the popular Yantaya mosque was targeting a specific cleric, Sani Yahaya Jingir, who preaches at the mosque there. He is known for his message of peaceful coexistence with others.

The second explosion happened at a restaurant frequented by politicians and travelers. Local resident Mohammed Shafi'i told news agency Agence France-Presse "the restaurant was badly damaged," and described a horrifying scene.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the blasts, but Jos has seen its share of violence from the Boko Haram Islamist insurgency.

Church attack kills six

Earlier on Sunday, a suicide bomber targeted a church in the northeastern city of Potiskum, killing five worshippers and himself. Sunday's attacks came on the heels of a week in which suspected Boko Haram militants killed over 200 people in attacks on mosques, villages and markets, mostly in Borno State on the border with Niger, Chad and Cameroon. Boko Haram has set out to prove its forces are not spent after those three nations joined Nigeria in a joint offensive to crack down on the insurgency.

A statement from the office of President Muhammadu Buhari said that he strongly condemned "the resumption of attacks by terrorists on places of worship which are highly revered places of prayer and communion with God for most Nigerians."

"Nigerians are a very religious people and President Buhari believes that the terrorists who wantonly attack our places of worship have wilfully declared war on all that we value, and must, therefore, be confronted with all our might and collective resolve," it said.

The US offered its support to Nigeria in a wake of the attacks. State Department spokesman John Kirby said "the United States stands with the Nigerian people in their struggle against violent extremism," and promised to " work closely with the Nigerian government and our international partners to combat Boko Haram and assist its many victims."

es/jil (AP, AFP, Reuters)