How Girls Become Suicide Bombers for Boko Haram – Amnesty International
The Country Director of Amnesty International Nigeria, Isa Sanusi, has revealed how young females in the North East are recruited as suicide bombers for Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) terrorist sects.
According to him, the young females who carry out suicide bombing operations are those who refuse to remarry other Boko Haram terrorists after their terrorist husbands are killed.
Sanusi made this known at a policy roundtable organized by the Centre for Media, Policy, and Accountability (CMPA) and the Department of Politics and International Studies at the University of Warwick.
Speaking during a panel session themed “Gender, Insecurity, and Resilience in the Global South: Nigeria Policy Roundtable,” the Amnesty International boss in Nigeria lamented the continuous marginalization of women and girls in the rehabilitation process for terror victims.
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“Whenever there is conflict and insecurity, women and girls are mostly the victims. Yet, they have always been sidelined and not involved in rehabilitation programs.
“The reality is that many women and girls have been abducted by Boko Haram terrorists and forcefully married. Some of the kidnapped women and girls are turned into sex slaves for several years.
“Some of them bore up to five children for the insurgents. I must also point out that the girls who engage in suicide bombing are not doing it of their own volition.
“The suicide bombing is a form of punishment for young girls and women who refuse to remarry terrorists or carry out commands and orders given by Boko Haram terrorists.
“So, suicide vests and bombs are forcefully strapped on their backs to go and detonate in public places,” he said.
To ensure that women, girls, and other victims of violent extremism in the country get justice and adequate rehabilitation, Sanusi advocated for the development of a Transitional Justice Plan by the Federal Government.
