( CNN ) -- The Nigerian Islamic militant group Boko Haram says it bombed U.N. offices in Abuja last week because the world body is a partner `` in the oppression of believers , '' a spokesman for the group said Wednesday . Friday 's car bombing killed 23 people and wounded more than 80 . Boko Haram , which aims to impose a strict version of Islamic law in Nigeria , claimed responsibility for the attack . In a brief telephone interview arranged by an intermediary , Boko Haram spokesman Abul Qaqa said a 27-year-old Nigerian named Mohammed Abul Barra drove the explosives-packed Honda Accord into the U.N. building . `` All over the world , the U.N. is a global partner in the oppression of believers , '' Qaqa said . `` We are at war against infidels . In Nigeria , the federal government tries to perpetuate the agenda of the United Nations . '' U.N. agencies operating in Nigeria include the World Health Organization , the U.N. Development Program , the children 's organization UNICEF , the Office on Drugs and Crime , the Joint Program on HIV and AIDS and the U.N. Development Fund for Women . The building hit by the attack housed 26 U.N. humanitarian and development agencies , Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said last week . Nigerian authorities said Wednesday that the bombing was plotted by a man with ties to the al Qaeda terrorist network . The Nigerian State Security Service said Mamman Nur was a `` notorious Boko Haram element '' who recently returned from Somalia , where the Somali militant Al-Shabaab has been linked to al Qaeda . Though a Nigerian engineer was among the dead , Qaqa said the group did not intend to kill the man . He added , however , `` We have told everyone that the U.N. is the bastion of the global oppression of Muslims all over the world . '' `` As such , we have warned everyone to steer clear of such places , '' he said . `` They should steer clear of such places that we have mentioned in the past . The battle has changed . '' Africa 's most populous nation is divided between a largely Christian south and a Muslim north . `` Boko Haram '' -- which translates loosely as `` Western education is forbidden/sinful '' -- holds all government authority in contempt and wants to establish a state in northern Nigeria under Islamic law .
Boko Haram calls U.N. `` a global partner in the oppression of believers '' and that it is not only an enemy but also a collaborator with Western powers. The blast in Abuja killed 23 people and wounded more than 80 .