An obscure Islamic fundamentalist group killed 12 police officers and one civilian in an attack on a police station in the northern Nigerian city of Kano, police said.
The attack came yesterday despite attempts by the authorities to step up security in the region following weekend violence across Nigeria that claimed 21 lives following Saturday's regional elections.
An officer at the scene yesterday told AFP that the armed group, comprised of men and women wearing red turbans and scarves, attacked the suburban police post in broad daylight, killing the station chief, his wife and 11 officers.
Police said they did not think the attack was related to the polls.
The earlier unrest had prompted the authorities in Kano, the most populous city in northern Nigeria and a flashpoint for both religious and communal violence, to impose a dusk-to-dawn curfew ahead of next weekend's presidential vote.
Kano State police spokesman Baba Mohamed confirmed the bodies of 13 people were taken to the morgue.
He said the attack was committed by a group known locally as the Taliban because of its admiration for the former rulers of Afghanistan, and had nothing to do with the ongoing elections.
"This has nothing to do with politics. It is purely religious. The same group that called itself Taliban which launched attacks in Yobe and Borno respectively in September 2004 and June 2005 were responsible for this attack in Kano," he said.
{{/usCountry}}"This has nothing to do with politics. It is purely religious. The same group that called itself Taliban which launched attacks in Yobe and Borno respectively in September 2004 and June 2005 were responsible for this attack in Kano," he said.
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