Death toll from Nasarawa bomb explosion rises to 56

The death toll in the unfortunate bomb explosion which occurred on Tuesday night in Rukubi, Nasarawa State, has risen to 56.

A victim of the bomb explosion, Malam Usman Bawa, who spoke to journalists at the Dalhatu Araf Specialist Hospital, Lafia, described the attack as “unprovoked”.

He recounted that residents of the area had come out in large numbers from their homes in Rukubi community to offload their cows on arrival from Benue State where the animals had been held for days as a result of violation of the state government’s anti open-grazing laws.

Mallam Bawa said he sustained multiple injuries on different parts of his body, adding that the explosion shattered his legs.

READ ALSO:Police confirms death of 27 herdsmen in Nasarawa blast

He said: “Some of them were bringing down the cows from the vehicle, others were preventing them from going to the stream to drink water, having not been fed for days.

“If cows stay for days without food and they are made to drink water after they are released, they will die.

“Among us that were affected by the explosion were those who came out to lend a helping hand to the owners of the cows that were arrested by Benue State Government.”

The victims called on the federal government to set up an independent investigative panel to unravel the circumstances surrounding the attack.

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