Over 70 Nigerian farmers killed by Boko Haram

<p>More than 70 farmers from Zabarmari, a village in north-eastern Nigeria, after the Islamist militant group, known as Boko Haram, accused the farmers of betraying them.</p> <p>On 28 November, 50 farmers were approached by Boko Haram militants and led to the nearby village of Koshebe. Presuming that they protected under the peace deal, they were slaughtered en masse in a building. When 20 more villagers went in search for these farmers they were also killed.</p> <p>Ismail Alfa and Ruth Maclean, writing in the New York Times, notes that Nigeria’s military has largely retreated from the area, leaving the region largely under the control of Boko Haram. They further state that these villagers find themselves in a Catch-22 situation.</p> <p>“If they report the militants to the Nigerian authorities, they risk gruesome reprisals by Boko Haram, a group known for abducting schoolgirls and killing tens of thousands of people. If they stay silent, they risk the wrath of the Nigerian military, which has been accused of routinely shooting villagers dead and burning their houses down during raids, as well as detaining people for years in inhumane conditions”.</p> <p>In 2015 Boko Haram pledged allegiance to ISIS however a year later the organisation fractured with several militants forming their own organisation known as the Islamic State West Africa Province, which gained the support of ISIS. It is this faction that claimed responsibility for the attack.</p> <p>Read more from the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/10/world/africa/nigeria-boko-haram.html">New York Times.</a></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>