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🇳🇬 Nigeria /Elections & Politics

We’re ready for negotiation, abductors of 50 Borno residents tell families

From The Punch · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Suspected Boko Haram terrorists have demanded negotiation for the release of over 50 abducted residents in Borno State, proposing a specific journalist as a mediator.
  • Families confirmed receiving proof-of-life evidence, including photographs and voice notes, and are willing to facilitate government contact with the chosen journalist.
  • The Defence Headquarters assured that troops are actively working to secure the release of 42 pupils abducted from a school in Askira Uba Local Government Area, emphasizing they have not been forgotten.

Suspected Boko Haram terrorists have communicated demands for negotiation to secure the release of more than 50 residents abducted in Borno State, specifying a journalist as their preferred mediator. This development comes as the Defence Headquarters assures the public that efforts are ongoing to rescue 42 pupils taken from Mussa Primary and Junior Secondary School in Askira Uba Local Government Area on May 15.

We received voice notes telling us they (victims) are alive and many in captivity more than the number we are asking. We learnt they are over 50 in numbers there.

— Hassan YatiYati, a spokesperson for the families, confirmed receiving proof-of-life evidence and indicated the number of abductees is higher than initially reported.

Families of the abducted victims confirmed receiving proof-of-life evidence, including voice notes and photographs, from the captors. Hassan Yati, a spokesperson for the families, stated that the group indicated the number of captives exceeds 50. The families are prepared to share all information with the government and facilitate communication with the journalist chosen by the abductors, whose identity Yati withheld.

Government should reach out to them through a journalist mediator they have chosen with name I am withholding.

— Hassan YatiYati relayed the kidnappers' specific demand for a journalist to act as a mediator in negotiations.

Yati appealed to the Federal and Borno State governments to act swiftly, emphasizing that the terrorists' demand is straightforward: engage through their chosen mediator. He suggested that the negotiation might not solely focus on ransom, unlike previous cases, and that "the government has the cards."

So, if the government reach out to us, we will link them up with the journalist and they can pick it from there.

— Hassan YatiYati expressed the families' willingness to cooperate with the government and facilitate contact with the chosen mediator.

Meanwhile, concerns are mounting over the welfare and survival of 78 Borno schoolchildren abducted in separate incidents. The health of these children is a particular worry, especially amid a cholera outbreak in the state. While the government reportedly possesses proof-of-life for some of these abducted students, their whereabouts and condition remain a significant concern.

It doesn’t have to be ransom like the case of Oyo. The government has the cards.

— Hassan YatiYati suggested that the negotiation might involve more than just ransom and that the government holds leverage.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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