Boko Haram Terrorists Make Demands, Selects Negotiator With Government

Boko Haram insurgents  have reportedly asked the government to open negotiations through a journalist selected as mediator.

‎

‎

‎The development came as the Defence Headquarters assured families that efforts were ongoing to rescue 42 pupils abducted from Mussa Primary and Junior Secondary School in Askira Uba Local Government Area on May 15.

‎Reports has it that the Boko Haram insurgents holds more than 50 residents in captivity.

‎

‎Thirteen of the captives were reportedly abducted on April 15 while travelling from Biu to Maiduguri.

‎

‎They included a seven-month-old baby and her mother, a pregnant woman travelling with her three-year-old child, a couple, students, recent graduates and two siblings who reportedly sat in the vehicle’s boot because they could not afford the full transport fare.

‎

‎The spokesperson for the victims’ families, Hassan Yati, told Saturday Punch on Friday that the insurgents had sent voice messages and a photograph showing that some of the captives were alive.

‎

‎According to him, the messages suggested that more people were being held than the families had initially identified.

‎

‎

‎He added that the group wanted the government to contact it through a journalist whose identity he declined to disclose.

‎

‎

‎Yati stated that the families were prepared to provide the government with the information and contacts they had received.

‎

‎Asked whether the insurgents had made other demands, Yati said they were willing to provide further details once the authorities opened communication.

‎

‎

‎He appealed to the Federal Government and the Borno State Government to act quickly, saying the victims’ families had endured months of uncertainty.

‎