A suicide car bombing struck the Sabon Gari bus station in Kano city, Nigeria’s second largest city. A Volkswagen Golf packed with explosives and driven by three suicide bombers rammed into buses filled with passengers, mostly Christian civilians traveling south. The blast and subsequent fires destroyed five buses, killing at least 41 people and injuring 65+ others.
18 Mar 2013 · Sabon Gari district, Kano Municipal, Kano
Deaths
41
Injured
65
Kidnapped
0
Total casualties
106
Perpetrators
Boko Haram
Response
President Jonathan condemned the attack and vowed continued counter-terrorism efforts
Displacement
0
Socioeconomic drivers
Boko Haram’s strategy to terrorize Christian communities, disrupt mobility, and demonstrate reach in Nigeria’s largest northern city.
Trajectory
This incident echoed the January 2012 Kano attacks, especially the 20 January coordinated bombings that killed about 185 people and the 22 June 2012 Krystal Lounge bombing, and mirrored the 26 April 2012 ThisDay newspaper office bombing in its targeting of a symbolic urban location. The Sabon Gari strike also recalled the January 2012 blast at the same motor park, highlighting repeated targeting of the site. The use of suicide vehicle bombs reflected tactics refined in earlier attacks, including the 17 June 2012 Kaduna church bombings and the 25 November 2012 Jaji cantonment bombing, and foreshadowed later mass-casualty transport hub attacks such as the 2014 Nyanya bus station bombings. By targeting Christian travelers, the attack reinforced the sectarian pattern seen in earlier violence, while also demonstrating the group’s capacity to strike major cities despite intensified military operations under the May 2013 state of emergency.
Cycle notes
This incident echoed the January 2012 Kano attacks, especially the 20 January coordinated bombings that killed about 185 people and the 22 June 2012 Krystal Lounge bombing, and mirrored the 26 April 2012 ThisDay newspaper office bombing in its targeting of a symbolic urban location. The Sabon Gari strike also recalled the January 2012 blast at the same motor park, highlighting repeated targeting of the site. The use of suicide vehicle bombs reflected tactics refined in earlier attacks, including the 17 June 2012 Kaduna church bombings and the 25 November 2012 Jaji cantonment bombing, and foreshadowed later mass-casualty transport hub attacks such as the 2014 Nyanya bus station bombings. By targeting Christian travelers, the attack reinforced the sectarian pattern seen in earlier violence, while also demonstrating the group’s capacity to strike major cities despite intensified military operations under the May 2013 state of emergency.
Pattern
Suicide Bombings on Civilian Transport
Related — Bombing/IED
A vehicle carrying civilians was traveling as part of a convoy escorted by the Nigerian military when it struck a landmine planted by Boko Haram insurgents. The explosion killed three people, including the driver, and wounded 11 passengers.
In a pre‑dawn coordinated assault, approximately 70 Boko Haram gunmen launched simultaneous attacks on three strategic locations in Damboa, Borno State, about 80‑100 km south of Maiduguri. The insurgents used a combination of assault rifles and locally fabricated bombs (IEDs) to target the town’s primary security infrastructure and its economic hub. The attackers struck the local police station (the Divisional Police Headquarters), the police barracks, and a branch of First Bank. The gunmen set fire to parts of the police barracks, looted the bank, and engaged security personnel in a prolonged shootout before retreating toward the nearby Sambisa Forest.
Hours after the inauguration of President Goodluck Jonathan, three coordinated bombs detonated at the Shadawanka Military Barracks in Bauchi. The explosions specifically targeted a "mammy market" (a civilian-accessible commercial area inside the barracks) and a beer garden where soldiers and civilians were socializing. This was a high-yield attack designed to strike at the morale of the military during a transition of power.