Since early 2012, the Islamist militant group Boko Haram has terrorized the northeast states of Nigeria, targeting schools, teachers and students. In response to these attacks, Amnesty International issued a report demanding an end to the violence in the hopes of preserving the right to education in this region. This report was released just days after members of Boko Haram killed approximately 40 rural college students asleep in their rooms.
Ahmed Gujunba who witnessed the massacre said “they came with guns around 1 a.m. and went directly to the male hostel and opened fire…the other students were running around helplessly as guns went off and some of them were shot down.” This is just the most recent of many attacks Boko Haram has led against the area’s educational system.
In total, since violence intensified in 2012, attacks on schools have resulted in the deaths of more than 100 students and 70 teachers. During this time, over 100 schools were also destroyed or forced to close. Those who have avoided violence often flee in fear, with more than 1,000 teachers having gone into hiding under threat of attack. Many of these teachers report being terrorized by members of Boko Haram who used intimidation tactics and death threats to stop them from teaching. Under these conditions, thousands of children in northeast Nigeria have been forced out of school and deprived of their right to education.
In July of this year, a series of brutal attacks led the governor of the northeast state of Yobe to close all schools. In response, UNICEF regional director Manuel Fontaine stated that “there can be no justification for the deliberate targeting of children and those looking after them.”
Translated into English, the name Boko Haram means “Western education is sin.” Founded in 2002 on the belief that Nigeria should live under strict Islamic law, the group has fought to establish an independent, Islamic state in the northeastern region of Nigeria since early 2012.
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