When the Pakistani Taliban, also known as the Tehreek-E-Taliban Pakistan, attacked a school brimming with children last month, everyone thought it was the lowest form of attack any terrorist group would adopt. Over 150 innocent, budding lives were snuffed out by the terrorists inside the school compound. However, in the world of Islamic terrorism, they seem to keep finding new ways of getting to stoop to even lower levels. In the latest such incident, the dreaded Boko Haram from Nigeria have done exactly that. How? By using a ten-year-old child as a suicide bomber.
According to NBC News, on Saturday, a bomb blast at a busy marketplace in Maiduguri, a city in northeastern Nigeria, killed at least 19 people. What the investigating officers did not know initially was the fact that the “merciless” suicide bomber in this case was a ten-year-old girl. The blast, apart from killing dozens, also resulted in injuries to more than 20 people, several of whom remain in a critical condition. An official from a local police department confirmed the age of the child.
“The explosive devices were wrapped around her body and the girl looked no more than 10 years old.”
The explosion at the busy marketplace reportedly happened at around 12:15 p.m. local time, ABC News reports. According to Zakariya Mohammed, a member of the civilian joint task force combating the Boko Haram, the number of injured has gone up to 27. All of them have been admitted to the local Borno Medical Hospital. There are, however, reports of more injured people being transported to other hospitals in the area.
Now, it is clear that ten years old is way too young for anyone to get indoctrinated and be ready for a suicidal mission. In all likelihood, the little girl might have not even known the fact that she was being used as a pawn to kill and maim others.
The report about this horrific attack by Boko Haram comes just hours after the Inquisitr had reported about the atrocities committed by Boko Haram in northeastern Nigeria. Over 2,000 people have been reportedly slaughtered by the dreaded group in the last 24 hours alone. Reports say that the city of Baga and small villages surrounding the area have been the worst hit after being run down by Boko Haram gunmen.
Reports of villagers fleeing from their homes have been confirmed by CNN. Those who were left back or hid in their homes were slaughtered by Boko Haram. In fact, some reports also say that the streets of several towns in northern Nigeria are littered with dead bodies.
With acts of terror from across the world on a rise, as seen with the recent examples of the attacks in Australia and France , are we entering a different phase of the war on terror and witnessing a new phase of Islamic terrorism?
[Image via Iran Daily ]