300 Young Girls in Nigeria

For those of you who are following the story in Nigeria regarding the kidnapping of 300 young girls, please read the following report:

NBC today:

“The initial reports were chilling: Armed men raided a northern Nigerian boarding school, piling more than 300 girls mostly ages 15 to 18 into pickup trucks, and stealing them to a secret location. A sinister plot emerged that their captors, Boko Haram, “converted” their young hostages to Islam and wanted to sell them into slavery — unless the government accepts a deal to release imprisoned members in exchange for the girls.”

53 managed to escape with 276 still missing. The Nigerian government is still considering what to do; our government is still promising to help, as are other governments. In the meantime, the girls are still gone and their parents are in agony as they carry lighted candles and wear shirt saying “Bring back our girls.”

NBC continues:

“Boko Haram roughly translates to “Western education is forbidden,” and it is the name that northern Nigerians have given to the rebels. They have killed an estimated 1,000 people this year alone in the West African nation, escalating violence from four years ago, when al Qaeda affiliates in Africa began training Boko Haram members.

Boko Haram has kidnapped other school children and women as bargaining chips with the government, but nothing on this latest scale. Other girls are refusing to go to school for fear that the Nigerian government is conducting a search effort to find the girls, who are believed to be held in Boko Haram encampments and in separate groups. The U.S. has offered intelligence support, but there are no plans to put American boots on the ground, the White House said Wednesday.

Instead, both manned and unmanned U.S. military aircraft have been deployed to do surveillance missions over Nigeria. Other countries have also offered aircraft assistance.”

We, in the United States, can’t imagine such a thing happening to our daughters with so little action being done to bring them back. But in Africa, where politics rules the day, it is not the fate of the daughters that is the main cause of concern; it is the question of what would be most beneficial to the Nigerian government since many of Boko Haram’s follower have already infiltrated their government.

NBC continues:

“Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan canceled a planned visit to the schoolgirls’ town citing safety concerns, a senior source told Reuters. (that took courage!!! Or was it fear that it took)

That won’t instill much confidence in Nigerians or show them that authorities can stand up to Boko Haram, said Shaul Gabbay, senior scholar at the University of Denver’s Josef Korbel School of International Studies.

“What message does that send and what effect will that have on the continuation of this conflict?” Gabbay asked. “It’s another boost for Boko Haram, and a clear manifestation that the emperor [Jonathan] has no clothes.”

It looks like help is on the way. For the latest update on this horrific situation, please see:

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/05/17/west-outlines-plan-to-crack-down-on-boko-haram/

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