At least five people were killed after an explosion ripped through a mosque in the Nigerian city of Maiduguri during evening prayers on Wednesday, news agencies reported.

The AP news agency cited a police statement as saying that 35 people were injured in the attack.

"Preliminary investigations further suggest that the incident may have been a suicide bombing," Borno state police spokesperson Nahum Daso was cited by AP as saying.

What else do we know about the mosque blast?

The preliminary finding was based on the recovery of fragments of a suspected suicide vest and witness statements, Daso said.

He stressed that investigations to establish the exact cause of the blast were still ongoing and that officers were searching the area for other explosive devices.

The French AFP news agency earlier cited local sources as saying at least seven worshippers died in the explosion.

No group has claimed responsibility for the blast so far, but mosques have been targeted by Islamist militants before.

An anti-Islamist militia leader was cited by AFP as saying the bomb was suspected to have been placed within the mosque before exploding midway through the prayer.

Jihadist insurgency in Borno state

Maiduguri is the capital of the northeastern Borno state, where jihadist groups like Boko Haram and its offshoot Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) have been active for nearly two decades.

Islamist violence in Nigeria has claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people and displaced millions across the country's northeast.

The city of Maiduguri had seen no major attack since 2021. But signs of the conflict remain in the city, with frequent checkpoints and military patrols.

Edited by: Rana Taha, Farah Bahgat