Boko Haram Abducts 20 Additional Women Near Chibok

The militant Islamist group Boko Haram has struck again, abducting 20 Fulani women from their village near Chibok, the town where over 200 Nigerian schoolgirls were abducted on April 14.

Nigeria’s Leadership newspaper reported Sunday that they had confirmed the abduction with security sources and local residents. While the kidnapping took place on Thursday, it was not reported on in any media sources until Sunday.

The Boko Haram militants invaded the Garkin Fulani village at 12 PM local time Thursday and forced the Fulani women to enter their vehicles at gunpoint. They then took them to an unknown destination, sources said.

The Fulani people are one of the largest ethnolinguistic people in Africa, numbering around 20 million in Nigeria and another 20 million throughout the rest of the continent. They live a predominantly nomadic lifestyle and are of the Islamic faith.

According to groups who were sent to the area with the mission to protect women from any further abductions, the militants struck when the men in the community were not on guard. One of the guards said of the abduction, “We got the information that they went there and took away the women at the time none of the males were there. The three young men they met there could not help the women, as the gunmen also ordered the three of them to enter the Hilux vans and took all of them away.” He continued, “We tried to go after them when the news got to us about three hours later, but the vehicles we have could not go far and the report came to us a little bit late.”

A top security official confirmed with Leadership, “The details are still sketchy for us to make any serious statement on it. We are still investigating to ascertain its veracity.”

On May 31, Breitbart News reported on the massive corruption within the upper echelons of the Nigerian military structure. The reports were later confirmed on June 3rd when ten Nigerian officials were found guilty of aiding and abetting the Boko Haram group.

The newest kidnapping begs the question: Was the timing of the Boko Haram strike when the Chibok guard was down simply a mere coincidence? Or instead, was the abduction carried out thanks to assistance within the corrupted ranks of the Nigerian military?