For those still in doubt, here are some more women and children rescued from Sambisa forest (PHOTOS)

MAY 5, 2015



Peradventure you are one of those dubting that the Nigerian army indeed rescued about 260 woman and children from Boko Haram captivity in Sambisa forest at the weekend, then these photos might help.

Some of the freed captives are currently in hospital receiving treatment for all kinds of illnesses while others have been moved into Internally Displaced Persons camps.

See more photos below:

Nigeria Boko Haram: Former detainee says insurgents told her Chibok girls 'married off and sold as slaves this year'

May 5, 2015


Chadian soldiers drive past flags painted by Boko Haram militants in the recently retaken town of Damasak, Nigeria(Emmanuel Braun/Reuters)

ome 220 schoolgirls abducted by Nigerian terror group Boko Haram (now Iswap) last April have been married off to insurgents and sold into slavery.

The claim was made by a civilian recently rescued by the Nigerian army following her abduction by Boko Haram in Dikwa, Borno state, in April.

Boko Haram Nigeria
Who are Boko Haram terrorists?

Boko Haram fights against Western influence in Nigeria and aims to impose its version of Sharia law in the country. The group declared an Islamic caliphate in Gwoza, along the Cameroon border, in August 2014.

Boko Haram has raided several cities in the north of the country in a bid to take control of more land.

Three states, Adamawa, Borno and Yobe, have been under a state of emergency since May 2013, due to Boko Haram's attacks (pic: Reuters).

During an interview with Reuters, Aisha Abbas, 45, said the insurgents told her the Chibok girls were "married off this year. Some sold to slavery, then others (militants) each married two or four of the girls."

The Chibok mass abduction caught the attention of the international media, sparking protests and prompting prominent politicians and celebrities worldwide to back online campaigns urging the Nigerian government to step up efforts to find the girls.

Abbas was among some 700 people -- mainly women and children -- recently rescued by the Nigerian army which, aided by troops from neighbouring countries, entered what it has been deemed as "the terrorists' last known stronghold" in the Sambisa forest, on the border with Cameroon.

Nearly one third of the girls freed by the army were "visibly pregnant", spreading fears they had been raped by the militants.

Boko Haram 'is fracturing'

Former detainees also said that the terror group is fracturing due to lack of weapons and fuel.

"One evening in April, Boko Haram followers stood before us and said 'Our leaders don't want to give us enough fuel and guns and now the soldiers are encroaching on us in Sambisa. We will leave you,'" a woman said.

"They threatened us but after they went we were happy and prayed the soldiers would come and save us."

The former detainees also said that after the insurgents had spotted some helicopters circling their stronghold, they tried to sell the female captives for 2,000 naira (£6) each.

A female civilian who was freed by the army said that some women and children were crushed by army vehicles and others wounded by bullets.

In March, the Nigerian army – currently aided by troops from Chad, Benin, Niger and Cameroon – started a ground and aerial offensive against the insurgents, who recently pledged allegiance to Islamic State (Isis).

The offensive was launched shortly before Nigerians headed to the polls for a general election that saw the victory of former army leader Muhammadu Buhari, who vowed to halt the deadly insurgence in the country.

Former president Goodluck Jonathan was accused by some of not having done enough to stop Boko Haram, which has killed thousands of people since its insurgency started in north-eastern Nigeria in 2009.

Mogidi:
Nice to have them back but when are the Chiboks girls going to get freed. Someone please tell Buhari they've suffered enough, time for him to negotiate their release.

TheOtherview:
Wouldn't it be nice to have some input from that overfed goon (Asari Dokubo) and his band of reprobates?

TheOtherview:
Wouldn't it be nice to have some input from that overfed goon (Asari Dokubo) and his band of reprobates?

TheOtherview:


Where is your humanity?
Is there no bridge you consider too far, in your quest to foist ethnically-induced hatred on every discussion?

Mogidi:


Hear hear!!
In the thread you opened few minutes ago, you refered to Asari's supporters as reprobates. Tribalism is not preserved for your ilk alone to milk.

Mogidi:
Someone please tell Buhari they've suffered enough, time for him to negotiate their release.

phlemzy:
It feels like a pain in the @$$ to have GMB rule over u,but this,u have to battle with for another 4years for now. You and ur clueless cum heartless failure of a president know no shame.

kowema:
These people are Boko Haram wives and children. How did they get kidnapped without us hearing about them despite their numbers....

The idea is, the insurgents know that dia wives and kids can be taken care of if they let the military get dem even if they get killed. Last Straw

14 Apr 2015

Boko Haram have abducted at least 2,000 women and girls since the start of 2014, according to rights group Amnesty International.

A report published by the organisation on Wednesday says many of those captured have been forced into sexual slavery and trained to fight for the group.

The group based its findings on nearly 200 witness accounts, including with 28 people who escaped from the armed group, which recently had a pledge of allegiance accepted by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

The schoolgirls who escaped from Boko Haram
"The evidence presented in this shocking report, one year after the horrific abduction of the Chibok girls, underlines the scale and depravity of Boko Haram's methods," said Salil Shetty, Amnesty International's secretary general.