Boko Haram abducts 5 women in troubled Nigerian town

By Olarewaju Kola

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AA) - At least five women and girls have been abducted by Boko Haram in Nigerian troubled northeast town.

Multiple security sources and residents told Anadolu Agency that some Boko Haram insurgents in a 4-wheel vehicle attacked Dikwa town, some 90 kilometers (about 53.4 miles) to Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, on Tuesday morning.

"The insurgents came at about 8:30am (local time), abducted seven women but found out one of them was a lactating mother, another one also escaped, while five were forcefully taken away," a military source in the area said.

Ali Bulama, a resident, said the insurgents fired several shots while escaping the area. "The woman that ran away from the Boko Haram as they were going was hit with gunshot on her back," Ali said in a message.

Military did not immediately respond to request for confirmation from Anadolu Agency in Maiduguri. The General Officer Commanding (GOC) 7 Division of the Nigerian Army in Maiduguri could not be reached on his telephone.

Boko Haram which pledged allegiance to the Daesh has kidnapped nearly 500 women in its decade-long violent activities in the country's northeast region. The abduction of over 200 schoolgirls in Chibok town on April 14, 2014 and 110 others in Dapchi in February 2018 triggered international condemnation.