Social media topic/ Boko Haram hostage story - Essay Example

Social media topic: Boko Haram hostage story Boko haram hostage story Boko haram is a group of jihadists which is based and active in northeastern Nigeria as well as in Northern Cameroon, Niger and Chad. The group’s name loosely translates to “western education is forbidden” and has been active since it was founded in 2002.The group membership is thought to be between 7,000-10,000 fighters. Boko Haram has been increasingly been involved in a spate of radicalization leading to violent rebellion in July 2009 leading to the execution of its leader.

Its unforeseen resurgence, in September 2010 after a mass prison break was accompanied by more and more sophisticated attacks. Recently Boko Haram has been involved in a series of kidnappings including that of schoolgirls.Thus, the night of 14th and 15th April 2014, Boko Haram took hostage of 276 female students of Government Secondary School –Chibok, Borno state in Nigeria. Boko Haram immediately claimed responsibility .Boko Haram pretended to be guards and broke into the school, telling the girls that they must leave the school and go with them.

Consequently, a big number of the girls were ferried away in lorries, probably in Konduga region of the Sambisa Forest-a stronghold of Boko Haram renowned for its fortified camps. Boko Haram also razed down houses in and around Chibok in this incident. Prior to the kidnapping, the authorities had closed the school for 4 weeks because of worsening security situation; however, on the fateful night students had been recalled from numerous schools so they could do their final physics exams. Over 530 students from various villages had registered to sit the Senior Secondary Certificate Examination, even though it is not clear the number that was in attendance when the attack occurred.

The ages of the girls ranged from sixteen to eighteen and were sitting for their final year of school exam. Preliminary reports said that eighty five girls had been released, a statement which however was later quickly retracted. On April 21st, parents claimed that 234 students had been taken hostage. Nevertheless, some girls escaped from the kidnappers in 2 sets. About 276 girls according to Nigerian police were taken captive; of whom by 2nd of May 2014, 53 had run away. Still there are other reports that indicated the number of girls kidnapped was 329, with 53 escaping and 276 still held hostages.

Thus Amnesty International believes that the military (Nigerian) had up to 4 hours advance warning of the impeding kidnapping, but did not send reinforcements in time to secure the school- a claim that was confirmed by the armed forces of Nigeria, nevertheless Nigeria’s over-extended troops failed to marshal reinforcements. According to Jonathan N.C of King’s College in London, Boko Haram took the girls hostage after increasingly coming under al-Qaeda’s influence in the Islamic Maghreb with the group’s objective being to use both the young girls and women as their sexual objects as well as a way of threatening the general public into non-resistance.

This kidnapping has further been compared to that of Algeria’s girls in the 1990s together as well as in early 2000s.Consequently, the girls have been forcefully converted into Islam and married off to Boko Haram members, with an alleged dowry of 2,000 Nairas (around 10 dollars) each. Several of the girls were carried to the neighboring nations of Cameroon and Chad with several reports claiming of sighting s of the girls crossing borders under militants escort as well as sightings of the girls by villagers residing in and near the Sambisa Forest.

Sambisa forest is regarded as Boko Haram’s refuge. Thus, it was reported in May 2015, that the Nigerian military had managed to reclaim majority of the regions controlled previously by Boko Haram, comprising of the several Sambisa forest camps, where Chibok girls were apparently kept. Whereas several women have since been released, not one of the Chibok students had been freed, with reports claiming that a number of the schoolgirls had been sold into slavery for about 10 dollars each, whereas others were forcibly married to the members of Boko Harm and may have probably been killed.

ReferencesBBC Staff, (2015). Nigeria Abductions:Vows to remember Chibok Girls. BBC News , np.s