Suicide blast kills 15 in Bauchi church

 A  suicide bomber who tried to drive an explosives-packed car into a church in Bauchi on Sunday killed at least 15 , 40 injured after suicide blast at Nigeria church: rescue agency people, including himself, and injured 40, officials said.

Speeding up his vehicle, the attacker approached a checkpoint near the church in Bauchi State, which has previously been hit by Islamist group Boko Haram and where tension between Muslims and Christians has led to violence in the past.

“We have a checkpoint not far from the church which prevented the bomber from gaining access to his target,” said state police commissioner Mohammed Ladan.

“So he rammed the car into a security gate and the car exploded, killing him and eight other people,” he added.

“Many people were injured but I can’t give you any precise number because the hospital is still trying to take a toll.”

Witnesses said the force of the blast near the Harvest Field of Christ Church on the outskirts of Bauchi city caused the building to collapse on the worshippers inside” he added.

The head of the Nigerian Red Cross in Bauchi state, Adamu Abubakar, told AFP he counted 35 people injured at an area hospital.

Residents said that the explosion caused the church building to collapse, prompting dozens of people to flee seeking refuge, but some ran straight into a fire raging outside.

“There was confusion as residents and churchgoers tried to flee. Some of them out of fright fell into the fire caused by the explosion,” said resident Timothy Joshua.

Another witness, who requested anonymity, said a presumed accomplice tried to escape the scene after the blast went off and was later chased down and killed by enraged residents, although police could not confirm this account.

“The other bomber abandoned the car they came with and wanted to flee, but he was pursued by a resident and worshippers and beaten to death,” this witness said.

Boko Haram has claimed attacks killing more than 1,000 in Nigeria since July 2009, with some of the worst bloodshed coming in the northeast.

The group staged a daring jailbreak in Bauchi in September 2010 during which it said roughly 100 of its members were freed.