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'Don’t Dismiss B’Haram/ISIS Alliance'- BBOG Cautions FG

Published

10 years ago

March 15, 2015

The #BringBackOurGirls group has cautioned the Federal Government against ignoring Boko Haram’s reported allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.
It urged the government to probe the implications of the alliance and to work hard to frustrate such a deadly collaboration.
The BBOG in a statement in Abuja on Sunday, demanded full disclosure on the previous and current rescue operations of the 219 Chibok schoolgirls that have been in Boko Haram custody since their kidnap on April 14, 2014.
The statement, signed by Co-coordinators, Oby Ezekwesili and Hadiza Bala-Usman, regretted that none of the girls had been rescued inspite of the progress recorded against Boko Haram by the troops in the North-East.
It said, “The alliance of Boko Haram and ISIS, which has been a trending issue, was seemingly downplayed by the Nigerian authorities. While this position could be interpreted as a strategy to avert creating panic in the minds of the citizens, we hope that there are concerted efforts behind the scenes to scrutinize the possible implications.
“The pronouncement by ISIS that fighters should join Boko Haram must not be dismissed as a mere publicity stunt. Libya, which already has a significant ISIS presence, shares borders with our immediate neighbour Niger.”
The coalition observed that since the counter-insurgency operation was two-thirds gone based on the established time scale, the military needed to provide a detailed account of how much ground had been covered and the objectives that had been achieved.