13, April 2018
Boko Haram has kidnapped at least 1,000 girls since 2013 0
The United Nations (UN)’s children’s agency has slammed the repeated attacks by the Daesh-linked Boko Haram terrorist group against children in Nigeria, announcing that at least 1,000 children have been abducted in the African country since 2013.
More than 1,000 children, mostly under 15 years of age, have been abducted in northern Nigeria since January 2013, the UN’s Children’s Fund, UNICEF, estimated in a statement on Thursday.
“Children in northeastern Nigeria continue to come under attack at a shocking scale,” said Mohamed Malick Fall, UNICEF’s Nigeria head. “UNICEF is appealing for an end to attacks on schools and all grave violations of children’s rights.”
He also called for the release of those still held in captivity.
Boko Haram has been regularly kidnapping youngsters. In 2014, 276 schoolgirls were abducted from the town of Chibok, located in Nigeria’s northeast. The mass kidnapping triggered global condemnation and intense criticism of Nigerian officials in the country as well as an international “Bring Back Our Girls” campaign.
“Nigerian authorities have made a commitment to make schools safer and more resilient to attack, and UNICEF stands with them to implement the Safe Schools Declaration, by which Nigeria commits to protecting schools and universities from violence and military use during armed conflict,” Fall further said.
The agency also said that at least 2,295 teachers had been killed and more than 1,400 schools had been destroyed due to the militancy in Nigeria.
The Boko Haram terror campaign in Nigeria is in its tenth year and has so far killed more than 20,000 and forced the displacement of over two million others.
Most recently, more than 100 schoolgirls were kidnapped by the group in the town of Dapchi, which had previously been unaffected by the militancy. The girls were later released reportedly through quiet efforts by the government.
Four years since the Chibok abduction, however, some 100 of the schoolgirls are believed to remain in captivity. Nearly 60 of the abductees escaped soon after the incident and some others have since been released through mediation.
Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, a former general, came to power in 2015 on a platform of stamping out the Boko Haram militancy. Despite retaking swathes of territory from the group, though, the government has been unable to prevent attacks from continuing against both civilians and government targets.
Buhari plans to seek re-election in 2019.
Source: Presstv
13, April 2018
Pentagon cautions White House: Syria strike could trigger wider war 0
US Defense Secretary James Mattis has warned that a military strike on Syria carried the risk of spiraling out of control, cautioning the White House as it weighs how to respond to a suspected chemical attack outside Damascus last weekend.
Speaking before a House Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday, Mattis said his primary concern in planning military action was avoiding anything that would trigger a wider war.
“On a strategic level, it’s how do we keep this from escalating out of control,” he said.
President Donald Trump initially threatened this week that he was committed to attacking the government of President Bashar al-Assad, which he accused of using chemical weapons in Douma.
However, Trump later softened his rhetoric, suggesting he was awaiting further advice and assessment before a final decision was made.
“Never said when an attack on Syria would take place,” he tweeted. “Could be very soon or not so soon at all!”
Mattis insisted the US policy in Syria still remained the same, which was the total defeat of the Daesh terrorist group without getting directly involved in the conflict.
“Our strategy remains the same as a year ago,” he said. “It is to drive this to a U.N.-brokered peace but, at the same time, keep our foot on the neck of ISIS until we suffocate it,” referring to Daesh.
The terror organization has been driven from most of the territory it held in Iraq and Syria, but pockets of militants remain.
On Thursday, Russia announced that the Syrian army had liberated Douma less than two months into its counter-terrorism operation in Eastern Ghouta.
“With every victory achieved on the field, the voices of some Western states are raised and actions are intensified in an attempt by them to change the course of events,” President Assad said after the announcement.
“These voices and any possible action will contribute nothing but an increase in instability in the region, threatening international peace and security,” he was quoted by Syrian state TV as saying.
The US has been in close consultations with Britain and France about launching a military operation in Syria as early as the end of this week, officials said.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday France had proof the Assad government launched chlorine gas attacks, and that it would not tolerate “regimes that think everything is permitted.”
British Prime Minister Theresa May met with her cabinet, agreeing that it was “highly likely” President Assad was responsible for Saturday’s alleged chemical attack in Douma.
May’s cabinet agreed on the need to “take action” against the Syrian government, but added that the prime minister would continue to coordinate with allies.
Mattis, however, told lawmakers that the United States still had no hard proof, but he believed the Syrian government was responsible for Saturday’s attack.
The Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, based in the Netherlands, announced it was deploying a fact-finding team to Douma, which was expected to arrive Saturday.
US officials have not said whether the presence of the international investigators could affect the timing of a potential military strike.
The plans for military action have especially been complicated because of the presence of roughly 2,000 Russian troops, who have been stationed in the country since 2015.
Russia has raised the possibility of a military confrontation with the United States if Syria is attacked. Russia also has sophisticated air defense systems in Syria and has threatened to shoot down American missiles.
Source: Presstv