Boko Haram suicide bombers kill 19

Four Boko Haram suicide bombers killed 19 people and injured 23 others in a series of attacks Tuesday night in Nigeria’s northeastern city of Maiduguri. The attacks first targeted a civilian self-defense force and later the people who gathered to mourn their deaths. State police commissioner Damian Chukwu said 12 of those killed were members of the civilian force while the other seven were mourners. Danbatta Bello, a spokesman for the self-defense group, said the suicide bombers targeted some of the defense fighters at a sandbag post and several others as they ate dinner. At least one of the bombers was female, Bello said. Nigeria’s government claims to have cleared out Boko Haram, but the terror group persists with attacks.