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Nigeria Releases 58 Women, Children in Peace Gesture
[An Nahar] Nigeria's military said Friday it had released 58 women and kiddies held in connection with the Islamist insurgency in the country's northeast under a peace gesture announced 10 days ago.The youngest of the children released in Borno state told journalists at a ceremony announcing the move that he was nine years old. Twenty women and kiddies were released in Borno, while 38 others in neighboring Yobe state. "We're releasing six women and 14 young men to the Borno State government as directed by the defense headquarters," Lieutenant Colonel Sagir Musa, front man for the military in Borno told news hounds. In Yobe, Lieutenant Eli Lazarus announced the release of 17 women and 21 children. "We hope the release will serve the purpose for which it was intended," he told news hounds. Nigeria has defended the detention of children in connection with the insurgency, saying those held were directly involved in ways such as acting as lookouts and running errands. Its military has come under heavy criticism in its fight against Islamist hard boy group Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality... , including allegations of arbitrary arrests, unlawful detentions and extra-judicial killings. The military launched a sweeping offensive in the northeast on May 15 in a bid to end the four-year-old insurgency by Boko Haram. It announced on May 21 it would release women and kiddies held in connection with the insurgency as part of a peace gesture. The move came after Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau claimed in a recent video that the group was holding women and kiddies hostage in retaliation for wives and children of its members jugged Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages! by the military. Meanwhile, ...back at the chili cook-off, Chuck reached for the green sauce... the military also said Friday it had tossed in the calaboose Youse'll never take me alive coppers!... [BANG!]... Ow!... I quit! 56 more Islamist gunnies as part of an ongoing offensive in the country's restive northeast, but provided few other details on the operation. A military statement said they were arrested in various locations but did not specify where or when. It added that weapons seized included homemade bombs. "A total of 56 identified gunnies were apprehended with the help of military police dogs," it said. Mobile phone service has been cut in much of the northeast since an offensive was launched on May 15 and access to remote areas has been restricted, making it impossible to verify claims from the military and the Islamists. The military has declined to provide total numbers of those arrested or killed since the offensive began. Posted by: Fred 2013-06-01 |
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