The Borno State Specialist Hospital in Maiduguri has issued an urgent appeal to members of the public to donate blood, as the facility grapples with a critical shortage triggered by the sudden influx of civilian casualties from a military airstrike that struck a weekly market in Gubio Local Government Area of Borno State on Saturday evening, killing no fewer than 30 people.
The airstrike, carried out on April 11, 2026, was executed by the Air Component of Operation HADIN KAI in coordination with the Nigerian Army as part of a counter-terrorism operation that had earlier targeted and destroyed terrorist positions in the area. The strikes hit the popular Jilli Market in Jilli village, located along the border between Borno and Yobe states, during a busy trading session, sending traders and residents fleeing in panic as explosions tore through the crowded marketplace.
Speaking with journalists on Sunday, the Medical Director of the State Specialist Hospital, Dr Shehu Muhammad, confirmed that 21 persons had been admitted to the facility as a direct result of the incident, comprising 16 males and five females who arrived with a range of injuries sustained from the blast and accompanying gunfire. He said the victims presented with varying degrees of severity, which he classified into mild, moderate and severe categories, and disclosed that surgical operations had already commenced on those in the most critical condition.
"Today, we received about 21 victims of a bomb blast as well as gunshot wounds from the town between Gubio and Geidam. Most of them sustained various injuries. Some had an abnormal injury as well as a head injury. We have started sorting them out and most have been sorted out except for the critical ones," Muhammad said.
While assuring the public that the hospital currently had sufficient supplies of all other medical necessities required for the treatment of the victims, the Medical Director said blood was the one resource the facility could not afford to run short of as surgeries multiplied and the condition of the more severely injured patients demanded ongoing transfusions.
"So far, everything is available, and they have received all the required first aid. Some required certain units of blood before the operation, and we have no problem for now. However, we expect the public to donate blood. At the end of the day, it is blood that we will be needing. Once we have enough blood, we will be up to the task. We are in need of blood," Muhammad said, adding that the possibility of additional victims arriving at the hospital in the coming hours could not be ruled out.
The airstrike has ignited a wave of controversy, with questions being raised over the military's targeting process and whether adequate intelligence was in place before the strike was carried out. The Nigerian Air Force announced it had opened a probe into the reported civilian casualties, while the Nigerian Army issued a statement justifying the operation. Borno State Governor Babagana Zulum, for his part, backed the military's action, claiming that the market in question had been closed for the past five years and expressing doubt that the location was in active civilian use at the time of the strike.
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