Just In: Again, ISWAP abducts 13 teenage girls in Borno
Gunmen suspected to be members of the Islamic State West African Province (ISWAP) terror group, on Sunday, abducted 13 teenage female farmers from Askira-Uba Local Government Area of Borno State.
Deputy Speaker, Borno State House of Assembly, Abdullahi Askira, confirmed the latest abduction by ISWAP.
He said the teenage girls were abducted while harvesting on their fields in Mussa District.
This is coming less than one week after the mass abductions of students from the Government Comprehensive Girls Secondary School Maga in Danko Wasagu Local Area of Kebbi State and St. Mary’s Secondary and Primary School, Papiri, in Agwara Local Government Area of Niger State.
The raids occurred alongside an attack on a church in Kwara, in which two people were killed and dozens abducted.
The surge in abductions comes amid rising international tension. Recall that the President of the United States of America, Donald Trump, had threatened military action over what he termed the persecution of Christians by radical Islamist groups in Nigeria, a claim rejected by the Nigerian authorities, insisting that the issue is more complex than the way it is being presented.
Nigeria continues to grapple with the legacy of mass kidnappings, most notably the 2014 abduction of nearly 300 schoolgirls from Chibok by Boko Haram militants. Many of those victims remain missing more than a decade later.
Speaking on the latest incident, Abdullahi, who represents Askira-Uba constituency, said the 13 abductees who are between the ages of 15 and 20 went to their farmland in Mussa farming area to harvest their crops when the assailants took them away.
He explained that both Huyim and Mussa are farming communities in Askira -Uba LGA, but the government relocated the residents of Huyim to Mussa due to lack of security.
According to him, “The victims are among those relocated to a relatively peaceful community of Mussa to earn means of their livelihoods through joint community farming.
“One of the victims who managed to escape has been reunited with her family.
“But, the other 12 victims, mostly between the ages of 15 to 20 years, are still in the custody of the abductors whose whereabouts remain unknown.”
Senator representing the area, Mohammed Ali Ndume (APC, Borno South), in his reaction, urged security agencies to intensify efforts and safely rescue the victims unhurt.
He appealed to people in the areas to continue to pray for the safe return of the abducted girls, while providing timely information to security agencies and relevant authorities on any suspected movement of terrorists in their respective communities.
