Boko Haram, Nigeria: Militant Group Married off Kidnapped Schoolgirls
A self-proclaimed leader of the Nigerian militant group, Boko Haram, said that the more than 200 kidnapped schoolgirls have not been released as was promised in a recent agreement with the Nigerian government, but instead have been "married off" to its fighters.
Abubakar Shekau is the man who made these claims, although Nigeria's military said it killed Shekau a year ago. Authorities reported in September that this kill was actually of an impostor posing as the radical group's leader in videos. In the latest recording, it is difficult to clearly see the man's face as he is filmed from a distance.
This raises significant doubts about whether Boko Haram will follow through with its promise of releasing the girls, who were stolen away in April from a secondary school in Chibok, located in northeast Nigeria.
"We have have married them off and they are all in their husbands' houses," the man claiming to be Shekau said in the video. "The over 200 Chibok girls have converted to Islam, which they confess is the best religion. Either their parents accept this and convert too or they can die."
Many of the kidnapped girls were Christians.
Shekau, or his impostor, also claimed there was never a cease-fire with the Nigerian or neighboring Chad governments, as previously announced by the African nations two weeks ago.
"All we are doing is slaughtering people with machetes and shooting people with guns. ... War is what we want," he said.
The five-year-old campaign from the terrorist group rallies to create an Islamic state in Nigeria. The organization, whose name translates to "Western education is sinful," have killed thousands during this time. Their attacks include robbing banks, setting off car bombs and burning down houses, even raising their flag over the Emir's palace when the group killed dozens of people and forced thousands to flee.
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