Boko Haram: Exchange schoolgirls for militants
Print Edition
BOKO Haram’s leader said in a video yesterday that more than 200 abducted Nigerian schoolgirls would only be released if the government freed militant fighters from custody.
Abubakar Shekau made the claim in a 27-minute video, which he claimed showed about 130 of the girls who were kidnapped from their school in the northeast town of Chibok nearly a month ago.
The girls’ disappearance has triggered global outrage, in part due to a social media campaign that has won the support of high-profile figures from US First Lady Michelle Obama to Pope Francis.
The militant leader said the girls shown in the video had converted to Islam and all were shown in Muslim dress, reciting the first chapter of the Koran and praying at an undisclosed location.
Boko Haram has made prisoner exchange demands before without success and Nigeria’s government dismissed the request outright.
Asked if the government would reject Shekau’s suggestion, Interior Minister Abba Moro said: “Of course.”
“The issue in question is not about Boko Haram ... giving conditions,” he added.
A total of 276 girls were abducted on April 14 from Chibok, which has a sizeable Christian community. Police say 223 are still missing.
Nigeria’s government has been criticized for its lack of immediate response to the kidnapping but has been forced into action as a result of international pressure.
President Goodluck Jonathan has accepted help from the United States, Britain, France, China and Israel, which have specialist teams.
French President Francois Hollande has also called for a west Africa security summit, which could be held as early as Saturday.
The latest footage shows girls in black and grey full-length hijabs sitting on scrubland near trees. The girls appeared calm and one said that they had not been harmed.
Boko Haram has been waging a deadly insurgency in Nigeria’s mainly Muslim north since 2009, attacking schools teaching a “Western” curriculum, and churches.
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