At least 11 people have died in twin car bombings in Nigeria

At least 11 people were killed and about 30 injured when twin car bombs hit a Protestant church in a major military establishment in Nigeria.

A bus laden with explosives first rammed into St Andrew Military Protestant Church in the military barracks in Jaji in Kaduna state at about noon on Sunday, said the director of army public relations Brig Gen Bola Koleoso. Then a car parked just outside the church exploded 10 minutes later, as people fled the first blast, he said.

Jaji is a symbolic target as it is home to the Armed Forces Command and Staff College, one of the country's most important military colleges, training Nigerian and foreign navy, air force and army officers.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but a radical Islamist sect known as Boko Haram has previously targeted Nigerian military institutions in the past.

The attack comes two days after a special military taskforce announced that it would be giving a total of 1.8 million dollars (£1.1m) in rewards for information that could lead to the arrest of top Boko Haram members.

The twin blasts also came a month after another church was attacked in the city of Kaduna, about 25 miles away from Jaji.

In that attack, a suicide bomber rammed a 4x4 vehicle loaded with explosives into St Rita's Catholic church holding Mass on October 28 in Kaduna, killing at least seven people and wounding more than 100 others, authorities said.

The killings sparked instant reprisals in a city with a history of religious violence, leaving at least two more people dead.

PA Media