All is not well in Nigeria – release of kidnapped school girls of Chibok hangs in the balance

Following the announcement of a ceasefire by President Goodluck Jonathan, speculation was rife that the 200 teenage schoolgirls kidnapped from their school in Chibok and held captive by Boko Haram would be released soon. But – recent developments have put a bug question mark on the fate of the girls.

However, in spite of the ceasefire, security sources and witnesses have revealed that the suspected insurgents had attacked the village of Abadam on Friday night, killing at least one person and ransacking homes. The next day, there was another attack on the village of Dzur in which at least eight people died.
It is the practice of Boko Haram to pass on its messages in videos by its supposed leader, Abubakar Shekau – he has not yet commented on the ceasefire. Hence, in view of continued attacks, the efficacy of the ceasefire appears to be in doubt.

Boko Haram is an outfit that has killed thousands of people in its attempt to establish an Islamic state in religiously mixed Nigeria where just over half of the country’s 167 million people are Muslim, and most of the remaining are Christians.