Boko Haram denied the announcement made by Nigeria, regarding a ceasefire agreement. They said such deals had never been made and that the 200 schoolgirls kidnapped in April have long been converted over to Islam and married. Two weeks ago, Nigerian officials declared that they were able to make a deal with Boko Haram. According to the officials, the deal included the release of more than 200 schoolgirls, which were kidnapped from a boarding school. On Saturday, November 1 Boko Haram’s leader ridiculed the idea of an agreement made with Nigeria in a video. Abubakar Shekau said: “Don’t you know the over 200 Chibok schoolgirls have converted to Islam? They have now memorized two chapters of the Quran”. The Boko Haram leader also denied that the schoolgirls would ever be released. He said: “We married them off. They are in their marital homes”. Abubakar Shekau also denied the knowledge of any negotiator, with whom it was said they worked out a deal. He added: “We will not spare him and will slaughter him if we get him”.
According to Mike Omeri, the coordinator of Nigeria’s National Information Center the statement released by the Boko Haram leader contradict what the Nigerian government had previously stated. Mike Omeri said the government will work on verifying the claims made by Boko Haram in the video. He stated: “We’ve heard about the video, and we can say the road to peace is bumpy and you cannot expect otherwise. Nigeria has been fighting a war, and wars don’t end overnight”. According to officials, Boko Haram and Nigerian officials had met in Chad twice. The discussion was mediated by the Chadian President Idriss Deby. The ceasefire agreement was announced on October 12. The negotiations lasted approximately one month, according to an aide to Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan. After agreeing upon a deal, the aide said the negotiations for the release of the schoolgirls would have been completed at a second meeting in Chad, a week later.
In the video released on Saturday, Boko Haram leader does not encourage peace. He talks about violence and he promises war, striking and killing with guns. In Nigeria, Boko Haram fighters continued their violent attacks on villages, even if the government said there had been a ceasefire agreement. A few days after the ceasefire was announced, members of Boko Haram kidnapped 60 women and girls from a Christian village in northern Nigeria. The Boko Haram fighters left 1,500 naira, approximately $9 and kola nuts as “bride pay” for each of the women they had kidnapped. Nigerian government is increasing its military campaign against the Islamic militants and terrorist organizations in parts of West Africa. Its airstrikes and ground operations managed to repel attacks against civilians in Borno ad Adamawa. Borno and Adamawa were the most targeted regions by Boko Haram.