At least 18 people killed in coordinated attacks by women suspected suicide bombers

Local authorities said at least 18 people were killed and 30 injured in coordinated attacks by women suspected of carrying out a suicide bombing in Nigeria.

The first suspect detonated an explosive device during a wedding ceremony in the northeast of the country Nigerian Gwoza town on Saturday.

A few minutes later, there was another explosion near the hospital, and a third attack occurred at a funeral.

The suspect was dressed as a mourner at the funeral service, according to the state emergency agency.

The fatalities included children and pregnant women, and 19 people were injured.

“I have mobilized emergency medicines to meet the shortage of medicines in Gwoza,” said Barkindo Saidu, Director-General of the Borno State Disaster Management Agency.

Nigeria’s president condemned the attacks, saying his “government will not allow the country to descend into an era of fear, tears, sadness and blood,” according to a statement posted online.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but Borno state has been badly affected by the 2009 insurgency launched by Boko HaramIslamic extremist group.

The group has used women and girls in the past to carry out suicide bombings, raising suspicions that some of the attacks came from thousands of people kidnapped by the group over the years.

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Saidu said the severity of the injuries ranged from abdominal ruptures to skull and limb fractures.

Authorities imposed a curfew in the city and residents remained on high alert after reports of another suspicious bomb attack in Pulka, a town just over a mile (2 km) from Gwoza.