7/15/2014
Boko Haram Releases Video Ridiculing #BringBackOurGirls
In its newest propaganda video, the Nigerian extremist group Boko Haram mocks an international campaign to bring back more than 200 schoolgirls whom the Islamists kidnapped in April.
Boko Haram Releases Video Ridiculing #BringBackOurGirls
In its newest propaganda video, the Nigerian extremist group Boko Haram mocks an international campaign to bring back more than 200 schoolgirls whom the Islamists kidnapped in April.
The 16-minute video, which was obtained by Agence France Press and released on Sunday, appears to show Boko Haram's leader Abu Bakr Shekau flanked by several gunmen and two armored personnel carriers. Shekau is seen dancing and jumping around.
"Bring Back Our Girls... bring back our army," he says in the clip, according to AFP, referring to the global campaign #BringBackOurGirls advocating for the girls' release. The news service points out that the line may be a reference to an earlier proposal that the group would free the students in exchange for the release of detained Boko Haram fighters in Nigeria.
More than 300 Nigerian students have been missing since April 14, when they were captured by Boko Haram at their school in Borno State. While several of the students have been able to escape their captors in the past three months, at least 200 are still in captivity. The Nigerian government says it knows where the girls are, but fears the militants would kill the girls if security forces launched an operation to free them.
The #BringBackOurGirls campaign has received support from all over the world. Activists have staged demonstrations in cities across the globe, while leaders and celebrities including U.S. first lady Michelle Obama and Pakistani teen activistMalala Yousufzai have voiced their support.
Also in the video released on Sunday, Shekau claims responsibility for several explosions in the city of Lagos last month, The Telegraph notes.
While little remains known about Shekau, propaganda videos have become somewhat of a trademark for the militant leader. In the past two months, he has released several clips claiming responsibility for the kidnapping and declaring a war on world leaders.
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