Monday, 11 April 2016

See why Boko Haram Wants $50million to release of Chibok schoolgirls

Boko Haram is seeking a ransom of nearly £40m for the release of the 219 schoolgirls that it kidnapped from the Nigerian town of Chibok two years ago,
sources close to the group have told The Sunday Telegraph.
The terror sect is thought to have issued the demand during secret contacts with the government of President Muhammadu Buhari, who has said he is willing to negotiate for the girls’ freedom.
The group’s leader, Abubakr Shekau, had previously demanded the release of jailed comrades in exchange for the girls.
But a deal along those lines – brokered by the Red Cross – fell through after Nigerian prison officials said that commanders on a list given to them by Boko Haram were not in their custody.
Details of the new ransom request emerged ahead of the second anniversary of the girls kidnapping on the
night of April 14, 2014, when they were abducted by Boko Haram gunmen posing as soldiers.One source close to Boko Haram said that around three months
ago, Boko Haram sent a message saying it would exchange the girls for a ransom of 10bn Naira, the equivalent of around £36m. “The ransom demand has split the
government,” said the source. “Some
think it would be worth it just to resolve
the Chibok situation, but others say it
will simply allow Boko Haram to hire yet
more insurgent recruits.”
The same source also said that a month after the ransom demand, Boko Haram had secretly passed the government a new video tape showing 15 of the
kidnapped girls.
“The girls are asked what their Christian
names are and what their new Muslim
names are,” he said, referring to the
“conversion” that Boko Haram forces
Christian prisoners to undergo. “They are
also asked if they have been raped or
mistreated, but they say no – they look
relaxed.”Asked about the ransom
demand, diplomats said only that they
were aware of “rumours” of contacts of
various sorts.
However, others involved in past attempts to free the girls claim that no proper “proof of life” video has ever been issued by Boko Haram, and dismiss talk of the
group being interested in either ransom demands or prisoner swaps.

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