Nigerian authorities allegedly knew about the raid on a boarding school where well over 200 girls were kidnapped in the dead of night, according to a London-based human rights group, Amnesty International. According to ABC News , if these statements are true, then the authorities in Nigeria could have had up to four hours of advance warning of the attack by the Boko Haram.
“Damning testimonies gathered by Amnesty International reveal that Nigerian security forces failed to act on advance warnings about Boko Haram’s armed raid on the state-run boarding school in Chibok which led to the abduction,” Amnesty International said.
According to the Herald Sun , Amnesty International has said that it has verified the information of the advanced warning and resulting abduction with “credible sources” and is now claiming that Nigeria’s military headquarters in Maiduguri was aware of the attack “soon after 7 pm on 14 April, close to four hours before Boko Haram began their assault on the town.”
The human rights group is saying that while the Nigeria military headquarters knew of the attack, they were unable to assemble the troops needed to suppress the attack “due to poor resources and a reported fear of engaging with the often better-equipped” Islamists, according to Amnesty.
“The fact that Nigerian security forces knew about Boko Haram’s impending raid, but failed to take the immediate action needed to stop it, will only amplify the national and international outcry at this horrific crime,” Netsanet Belay, Amnesty International’s Africa director, research and advocacy, said today in a statement according to ABC News . “It amounts to a gross dereliction of Nigeria’s duty to protect civilians, who remain sitting ducks for such attacks. The Nigerian leadership must now use all lawful means at their disposal to secure the girls’ safe release and ensure nothing like this can happen again.”
ABC News continued on to say that among those who raised awareness of the attack on the boarding school was a civilian patrol set up by the military in a neighboring village. The patrol reportedly triggered a chain of phone calls on the night of the kidnapping after they noticed “unidentified armed men on motorbikes heading toward Chibok.”
Amnesty International is now saying that two senior officials in Nigeria’s armed forces have confirmed the military’s being aware of the planned attack. While ABC News couldn’t get an immediate comment from the Nigerian government , reports are now stating that there may be a peace negotiation in the works that could bring the kidnapped girls back alive within a weeks time according to Shehu Sani.
Stay with The Inquisitr as more information becomes available on the missing school girls from Nigeria.
Tweets about “#bringbackourgirls”
[Image via Ayo Obe Twitter Feed]