Three North Korean doctors killed in Nigeria; Government, U.N. agencies condemn murders of polio workers

"Three North Korean doctors have been killed in a pre-dawn attack in Nigeria's northeastern town of Potiskum, police say," but "[t]he motive of Sunday's attack was not immediately clear," Al Jazeera reports (2/10). "The deaths ... of the doctors in Potiskum, a town in Yobe state long under attack by the sect known as Boko Haram, comes after gunmen killed at least nine women administering polio vaccines in Kano, the major city of Nigeria's predominantly Muslim north," the Associated Press notes, adding, "No group has yet claimed responsibility for that attack either, though it follows alleged Boko Haram attacks now focusing on softer targets, like lightly guarded mobile phone towers."

According to the news service, "In a statement Friday, President Goodluck Jonathan condemned the killings of the polio workers and promised that efforts to cut child mortality wouldn't be stopped by 'mindless acts of terrorism'" (Abubakar et al., 2/10). A U.N. joint statement issued on Friday said, "UNICEF and WHO join the Government of Nigeria in condemning attacks in Kano state, Nigeria, that have killed and injured health workers. Such attacks are a double tragedy; for the health workers and their families and for the children and vulnerable populations who are robbed of basic life-saving health interventions. These attacks are unacceptable under any circumstance" (2/8).