Boko Haram has seized the northeastern Nigerian
town of Chibok, from where 276 girls were
kidnapped more than six months ago and which
the government vowed to secure after the mass
abduction.
The April 14 kidnapping in the impoverished town
in southern Borno state brought unprecedented
global attention to the armed Islamist group’s
brutal five-year uprising.
Heads of state and top celebrities joined a viral
social media campaign calling for the rescue of
the seized, mostly Christian, schoolgirls, 219 of
whom are still being held.
Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has
repeatedly promised to rescue the schoolgirls,
including on Tuesday when he launched his bid
for a second term in office ahead of February 14
polls.
In a July meeting in the capital Abuja with those
affected by the kidnapping, Jonathan and top
military brass also pledged to provide better
security for the town.
But the violence in the northeast has intensified
since, with Boko Haram reportedly seizing more
than two dozens towns and Nigeria’s security
forces reportedly absent in many areas.
The military was not immediately available to
comment on the developments in Chibok.
But given the town’s symbolic significance, its fall
will likely raise fresh doubt about Nigeria’s ability
to handle the Boko Haram threat.
- ‘They are in control’ -
“Chibok was taken by Boko Haram. They are in
control,” said Enoch Mark, a Christian pastor
whose daughter and niece are among the
hostages being held.
Mark and the senator for southern Borno, Ali
Ndume, said the militants attacked at about 4:00
pm (1500 GMT) on Thursday, destroying
communications masts and forcing residents to
flee.
Ndume said that he had received calls from
fleeing residents about the attack that the town
“was now under their (Boko Haram) control”.
“There is no telephone service now in Chibok,
which is why it took time before the reports
reached me,” he added.
Mark said the attack on the town appeared to
come after Boko Haram overran the towns of
Hong and Gombi in neighbouring Adamawa state
following the group’s ouster from the commercial
hub of Mubi.
“They came in and engaged soldiers and vigilantes
in a gunfight,” he added.
“Some of us managed to escape. All the telecom
towers in the town were destroyed during the
attack with RPGs (rocket-propelled grenades).
“No-one can say what the situation is in the town
in terms of destruction to property.”
- Inside information? -
At the July meeting with Jonathan, Chibok
community leaders stressed that aside from the
trauma of the mass kidnapping, locals remained
in daily fear of attack and pleaded for more
security.
Ayuba Chibok, whose niece is among the
hostages, said at the time that people told the
head of state that they “were tired of sleeping in
the bushes”.
In a series of phone calls to AFP in recent months,
Chibok elders stressed that security had
continued to deteriorate, despite the promises
made at the meeting.
A senior rescue worker warned late last month
that Chibok’s fall was imminent.
Pogo Bitrus, chairman of the elders forum in
Chibok, also confirmed the attack but said Boko
Haram may have had inside information about
security in the town.
“The vigilantes use shotguns and cartridges and
have been short in supply, so the leader left
yesterday for Maiduguri to procure more in the
event of any attack,” he said by telephone from
Abuja.
“But Boko Haram launched the attack while he
was still in Maiduguri. He was due to come today,
so it looks like they knew what was happening.”
Bitrus said the vigilantes were preparing for a
counter-attack and troops had been deployed
from Damboa, 36.5 kilometres (22.5 miles) away
by road to the northwest.
“I can assure you they are going to retake Chibok,”
he added.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/11/boko-haram-seizes-chibok-hometown-kidnapped-schoolgirls/