Sixteen
women have been abducted in a fresh attack by suspected Boko Haram members in
Adamawa State.
The
member, representing Michika/Madagali Federal Constituency in the House of
Representatives, Mr. Adamu Kamale, confirmed the abduction on Thursday.
The
military had yet to release a statement on the latest abduction as of the time
of filing this report on Thursday.
Also,
a security source in the state said that the captives, comprising 14 women and
two girls, were abducted on Tuesday evening.
The
source added that the news of the incident did not get to Yola, the state
capital, because telecommunications equipment, destroyed by the sect in
previous raids, had not been rebuilt.
“Fourteen
women and two girls were abducted by Boko Haram in the Sabon Gari area of
Madagali Local Government Area yesterday.
“The
women were abducted while they were fetching water and doing fishing in the
area,” the source added.
The
news of abduction of the women came just as the leader of the sect, Abubakar
Shekau, according to AFP
appeared in a video on Thursday, telling his followers that his end had come.
Shekau
was said to have called on his followers to embrace peace, but the video did
not expressly confirm the claim.
On
the abduction in Madagali, the source said, “The members of the vigilance group
that escorted them fled on sighting the Boko Haram who were in large number and
were armed with heavy weapons.”
The
source added that two of the women were able to escape from the Boko Haram
ambush while the rest were taken away.
The
source said security operatives arrested one of the members of the vigilance
group, who were with the women when they came under the Boko Haram attack.
Also,
Kamale, in his version of the incident, said the women were ambushed and taken
away as they fished in local community water.
The
lawmaker added, “They are still attacking our people. Imagine 16 women being
taken away at a time?
“This
incident happened two days back (Tuesday) in a community near Sabon-Gari in the
Madagali Local Government Area.
“These
women can be killed. If they keep coming and taking our people away, how many
more will these insurgents abduct?
“All
the communities that share borders with the dreaded Sambisa Forest are porous
and exposed. These people get in and get out as it pleases them. We are even
suspecting connivance between them and the security agencies for economic
gains.”
Kamale
specifically sought the intervention of President Muhammadu Buhari, advising
him to always take a second look at security reports being presented to him.
The
BBC recalls
that Shekau, for the first time in more than a year, appeared in a new
propaganda video, rallying his fighters, who had been under heavy pressure from
regional forces.
He
however appeared to signal that his time in charge of the terror group might be
coming to an end.
In
a message that contained none of the defiant bluster, taunts and denunciation
of political leaders of previous videos and will likely be interpreted as an
admission of defeat, the dejected-looking Shekau declared in Hausa, “For me,
the end has come.”
Shekau,
who in March 2015 pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in an audio message,
added, “This is a message of greeting and joy for you to see my face.
“This
is my desire: that whoever sees this, will hear nothing but greetings between
me and you. Only Allah knows the rest, as you believed (and) as you submitted.
For me the end has come.
“This
is only the message I want to send to you for you to understand that this is
certainly I. This is why I did this.
“May
Allah protect us so that no hypocrite stands between us. May Allah protect us
from the devil so that he doesn’t achieve his evil among us.
“May
Allah protect us and may we stand firm on the path of Allah. I thank my
creator.”
A
military source in the Borno State capital, Maiduguri, told AFP, “Watching
Shekau in this video, the message is clear: the game is over.
“For
this arrogant and boastful terrorist to speak in such a meek and subdued tone
shows he has been trounced beyond his imagination.”
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