The terrorist group Boko Haram has increased its violent rampage with a new tool, girls as young as 10 years of age are now being used as bombers. Last week, three young girls were used to detonate bombs in busy market areas, killing dozens of Nigerians. According to the British think tank Chatham House, the reprehensible tactic is using kidnapped girls.
“Using children to carry and detonate explosives is not a new tactic for Boko Haram but it is intensification. Boko Haram has been abducting and conscripting children and young men and women for a long period for various purposes – they will be seen by the movement as expendable resources,” stated Elizabeth Donnelly, assistant head of the Africa program
It is unknown whether or not the girls are aware that they are carrying a bomb. Authorities suspect that in the case of the three recent bombings, the bombs were remote detonated. But it is clear according to many experts that using the kidnapped girls as weapons is a horrendous and despicable act that has been condemned by the United Nations. The highest profile mass kidnapping occurred last year in the Village of Chibok where 276 girls were kidnapped from school.
