Bombing At Nigerian High School Kills Dozens

A suicide bomber who was reportedly dressed in a student uniform detonated explosives at a large boys' high school in northeastern Nigeria, killing as many as 48 students. The attack during a morning assembly is being blamed on the insurgent group Boko Haram.

From Lagos, NPR's Ofeibea Quist-Arcton reports:

"Disguised as a uniformed high school student, a bomber disrupted weekly assembly by detonating explosives.

"Survivors say about 2,000 students had gathered at the Government Technical Science College in Potiskum, in Nigeria's northeastern Yobe state, when an explosion ripped through the hall.

"One boy said they were waiting to be addressed by the school principal when he was blown off his feet by a deafening blast and that people were screaming and running.

"The military rushed to the scene, but furious residents hurled stones at the soldiers, accusing them of failing to counter a deadly insurgency that has killed thousands of people and displaced hundreds of thousands more."

On today's Morning Edition, Ofeibea adds that Boko Haram has been linked to most attacks in northeastern Nigeria, particularly in violence that targets schools. And she notes that the deadly attack comes weeks after government officials announced they had brokered a peace deal with the Islamist group.